What Doesn't Kill
by Katequestie
Summary: Lucas attempts to deal with living in a brave new world in which one-time enemies are friends, and one-time friends are now enemies...
1. Chapter 1

Author's notes: This fic has been a work in progress for four years, so it's been a part of me for a long time. I intended it to be a short action-adventure piece, but I guess it had other ideas! I hope you like it!

Visit my website, ELF Central: www.angelfire.com/my/elfcentral

What Doesn't Kill...  
part one

"Ensign!" Lucas Wolenczak looked up, startled, then felt his face flush scarlet with embarrassment as he realized the reason Captain Oliver Hudson was yelling at him. He had almost let himself fall asleep on duty. Inwardly he braced for the angry brigade that was soon to come. 

"Sir."

"ETA to Purcell Colony." He checked his readouts.

"Two hours, sir."

"Mr. Wolenczak, I apologize if our current tour of duty is not exciting enough to keep your attention, but I would appreciate it if you could possibly keep yourself awake long enough to do your job?"

"I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again."

"I'm sure it won't, Ensign. You're dismissed." Stunned, Lucas looked around the bridge at the sympathetic and shocked looks of the crew. Taking off his headset and sighing, he replied.

"Yes, sir." His jaw set, he rose and walked off the bridge, throwing his headset on his consul as he left.

~

Lucas stalked into hid room and threw himself on his bunk, He was glad that Tony wasn't in the quarters they shared at the moment, because he knew that Picollo would want to know what was wrong, and Lucas wasn't sure what he would tell him. How would he explain to his friend that he had let himself fall asleep on duty, leaving Hudson open to yell at him once again, because he hadn't slept much since Section Seven had come with Bridger and taken him to Banaba Island? That would force him to tell about the nightmares, the reason why, instead of sleeping, he drank cup after cup of coffee to keep himself awake. Then he would have to explain what happened at Banaba Island, but it was classified and he had been ordered not to tell anyone what he had seen there. No, Lucas could never explain what he had been feeling; not to Piccolo, and not to anybody else. Even though Commander Ford had been at Banaba, he had been a part of it, had helped in the atrocities there. Lucas didn't know if he could ever forgive the commander for his past.

As for Bridger....Lucas hadn't even said good-bye to him when he left. He didn't think that he ever wanted to see Bridger again. For all his principles, his high morals, Bridger had been a willing participant in the horrors of Banaba. All the things that Lucas had admired and tried to emulate in Bridger had turned out to be nothing but talk. The hypocrite. Lucas had lost all faith in Nathan Bridger.

His crumbling relationship with his former captain had gotten Lucas to think about all the other relationships he had let crumble wince returning from Hyperion. He didn't even know if his friends or family knew he was alive. The vid-link numbers he had were 10-years outdated, and he just hadn't had the energy to search for them when he first returned. 

Until Banaba. After he returned and fumed for a few days, he had decided to start his search. For the past few weeks, his computer had been searching newspapers, magazines, and public records around the world for any mention of his friends and, after a moment's hesitation, his family. As of yet, the search had turned up nothing. 

Lucas tried to keep himself from falling asleep, but exhaustion overtook him and carried him off. Suddenly, he was back at Banaba, staring at the lifeless body of the tortured GELF. Only this time, his eyes flew open and his mouth formed the silent word "you..." Then the world swirled around him and he found himself standing on a high, rocky cliff. As he moved to peer over the edge, his feet dislodged a group of small rocks that fell 50 feet to the crashing waves below. 

His breath caught in his throat and he fell to his knees as he looked up and saw the two figures that had appeared on the cliff's surface before him, figured that he had tried desperately to forget about after their deaths. Miguel and Wendy stared with angry eyes at the boy in his knees in front of them.

"You left us, Lucas." Wendy's voice was part rage, part disbelief and grief. "You left us to die."

"No..."

"You killed us!" Miguel raged. "You didn't even try to help!"

"No, I couldn't. I didn't have a choice!"

"You coward. You wimp!"

"No, please!"

"How many times did we risk our lives for you and you couldn't leave fast enough!"

"No..." Lucas felt the tears start to fall. "No. It wasn't like that at all..."

"You, Lucas." They raised their arms and pointed strait at the sobbing boy. "You, Lucas. Lucas...Lucas...Lucas..."

"Lucas?" It was the voice of Tony Piccolo, shaking Lucas out of his haunting nightmare. Lucas sat strait up, panting, When he reached a hand up to wipe the dream from his eyes, he was embarrassed to find wet tears falling. "Luke, you okay?"

"Yeah, Tony." His voice sounded shaky despite his efforts to calm down. "I, uh, I just had a bad dream." 

"Ya' wanna talk about it?"

"No, Tony." he said, almost too quickly. He looked up to see the hurt look on his friend's face. "Maybe later, okay? I need to get some coffee..." Shakily, he got to his feet and started for the door.

"You sure you're gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, Tony. I'm fine." He turned and offered a smile. Lucas knew that it didn't fool his roommate, but Piccolo knew enough about Lucas to know when to leave him alone.

~

Lucas sat in the mess hall, his hands around a warm cup of coffee. He was still shaky, but the images from the dream were beginning to fade. He closed his eyes and breathed in the fumes from the mug.

"Lucas?" Startled, Lucas opened his eyes and eyed Commander Jonathan Ford warily.

"Yes, sir?" Ford sighed. He felt the coldness he had been receiving from Lucas, and he had just now gotten the courage to talk to him about it.

"May I join you?"

"I might not be the best of company, but seeming as you're my commanding officer and all, I don't see that I have much choice in the matter." He gestured to the seat across from him and bent over his cup of coffee again, dismissing Ford from his presence. Ford sighed and took the chair Lucas had offered him.

"Lucas, can we talk? Please..."

"About what?" Lucas set down his cup and stared the commander directly in the face. His anger subsided a bit at the expression Ford wore. He wasn't expecting the look in his eyes. They were haunted, almost like...he pushed the images of the dream back down deep inside of his mind and downed the rest of his coffee in one big gulp.

Ford looked around the mess hall, making sure they were alone before he began. "Lucas, I know what happened at Banaba shook you-"

"Shook me?" Ford was shocked at the amount of anger he heard in the teen's voice.

"Please, Lucas. Just let me say this, all right?" He sighed. "You can't let what happened affect your performance on duty. Hudson's starting to notice, and I can't protect you forever."

"I don't need protection from Hudson--from you or anybody else! I'm 19 years old; I can take care of myself! Why does everybody think they have to protect me? I'm not the naive 15 year old boy I was when I first came on board. Why can't anyone see that?" He was yelling now, and Ford was glad that they were alone in the mess.

"Lucas, what's happened to you? Lately you've been irritable and jumpy as hell. You never smile, and you obviously haven't been getting enough sleep." At this, Lucas looked down at the empty mug in his hands. He felt his anger subsiding, and the tears overcome. "Lucas, what happened to the cocky, sweet tempered, caring young man that I served beside for two long tours?"

"I'm sorry, commander," he said after a long pause, "but that boy got left behind on Hyperion." He looked up then, and Ford could see the glint of tears in the boy's eyes. He had never seen Lucas cry. "Excuse me."


	2. Chapter 2

What Doesn't Kill...  
part two

Weeks later found Lucas' life no better. His search had as of yet turned up nothing, and he was beginning to think that it never would. But worst of all, his friend and crew mate Lieutenant Jim Brody, died. He died nobly, of course, if there was such a thing; Brody wouldn't have had it any other way. But that didn't make much of a difference to those he left behind. Sure Brody had died saving Henderson's life, but so what? Wasn't that just trading one life for another? What was the point? Noble or not, Jim Brody was dead. Gone. Bit the dust. No longer in existence. Six feet under. What good does nobility and bravery do him now?

"Attention all crew; assemble on bridge in five minutes. Repeat, all crew members are requested to assemble on the bridge in Five minutes." Lucas looked up at the ceiling, as if he could see the face of the speaker over the intercom. This was the moment he had been dreading for days, ever since the Macronesian incident. This was where it became real. Sighing, he half jumped, half rolled off of his bunk and glanced in the mirror. His eyes weren't too raw from his latest contemplations, he thought before opening the door and leaving his quarters.

By the time Lucas got to the bridge, most of the crew was already present, so he lingered at the back of the crowd. He was so far back that Hudson didn't notice his slowness to salute as he walked onto his bridge. 

"At ease." Hudson slowly walked across the room and took his place at the podium that had been set in the center of the room. In his hand he held a folded UEO flag, and when he reached the podium, he unfolded it in one big flourish of symbolic fabric and set it down hanging over the front. He paused a moment to reflect before he began his speech.

"Lieutenant James Brody was an exemplary officer. He was brave and courageous, but at the same time he cared about those under his command. He was a wonderful friend. I am proud to say that I commanded such and man, and you all should feel lucky you had the honor of serving with him." Hudson paused, and bent his head to gain control of his voice. Lucas could hear several sobbing voices in the silence before Hudson lifted his head and continued. "Lieutenant Brody's death was the kind that every enlisted man and woman prays for; a noble end, fighting to protect what he believed in. Brody gave his life for a higher cause, and all we can do is keep on fighting, and not let his death be in vain. We have to fight against tyranny, oppression and the defeat of our beliefs. Brody's last words were, 'with your shield or on it.' Remember that. If all of you do, then Jim's death will not have been in vain, but instead he will always be here, in spirit, within each of you. Thank you."

Hudson closed his eyes briefly and stepped down from the podium, nodding to O'Neill as he walked away. Shakily, and after rubbing his hand over his eyes, he pressed a button on his consul and the opening strains of an old 20th century song came over the speakers. 

"I will remember you, will you remember me...Don't let your life pass you by...weep not for the memories..."

From across the other end of the room, Lucas could hear a slight commotion as a sobbing Henderson was helped out of the room by Commander Ford. After the song was over, Lucas stood in the back of the room, leaning against the wall as the solemn crew slowly filed out. For a moment, Lucas found himself alone on the huge bridge, standing in front of the UEO flag that was swaying back and forth slightly in the recycled air. Although he didn't know why, he felt drawn to the flag, the symbol of all that Brody had died to protect. With each step he took, a brick was torn down in the enormous wall Lucas had built around his pain. By the time he got to the podium, all he could do was fall to his knees, sobbing, and let it all out.

~

Lucas' feet wandered about the ship with a mind of their own. His head was too muddled right now; too confused to guide them. He wasn't thinking about where he was going. His head was too muddled now to guide them. He wasn't even thinking about where they were taking him; he wasn't even wondering about where he was going. His tears had dried but their footprints were still visible on his flushed cheeks. all he could think about was not letting anyone see him like this. He had been successful in hiding his tears since the beginning of the tour, and he wasn't about to let them see him cry now.

Suddenly, when his feet stopped, he found himself in C-deck, at the entrance to Darwin's moon pool. He closed his eyes and felt the familiarity and warmth of the room fill him and give him some sort of sanctuary. This was the one place on the entire 2,000 foot sub that hadn't changed for him since the first tour. If he closed his eyes, like he was doing at that very moment, he could still see Dr. Westphalen, with her kind eyes and reassuring British accent, scolding him for something that he had done and she hadn't appreciated. He would pretend to be upset at her scolding, but deep down he was pleased that she had cared enough about him to be angry. At home, his father never would have taken the time to even notice what he had done.

That thought brought back a whole new flood of images and emotions, ones which Lucas didn't care to remember again. Ever. He was surprised at how quickly the memories and feelings came back to him; he had pushed them so far down, covering them with a thick cloud of cockiness, that he didn't think he could ever feel them again. He still didn't want to. Rubbing his red raw eyes, he walked over to the edge of the water and sat down wearily onto the floor, letting one arm reach over and trail a finger in the water. He sighed, and let himself get lost in his thoughts.

A while later, a big splash of water hit Lucas' tear streaked face, soaking him thoroughly from head to toe. Suprised, he wrung his hands through his soaked hair and looked up to find the perpetrator. He smiled weakly at the shiny gray head bobbing up and down in the water.

"Darwin. I should have known." He rubbed the dolphin's melon affectionately. "How ya' doin'', buddy?"

"Lucas sad. Why Lucas sad?"

The small smile dropped from his lips. Darwin always seemed to be able to pick up on his moods as soon as he walked in the door.

"Well, Dar," he paused, searching for the right words. "Do you remember when we talked about death?"

"Yes. When people go where light is dark."

"Yeah, well..." he struggled. He couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. By doing that, he would be admitting the reality of the situation. "Darwin, Jim...he..."

"Brody go where light is dark?" Silently, he thanked the dolphin for finishing his sentence. 

"Yeah, Darwin." There was a long silence as the dolphin processed this new information. Lucas was briefly angry that no one had thought to tell Darwin about Jim.

"Darwin sad. Lucas sad. Lucas and Darwin be sad together?" This brought back the tiny smile to his face. 

"Yeah, Darwin. We can be sad together."

~

Hours later, Lucas felt better than he had in months. There was a slight bounce in his step as he approached his quarters, and he actually managed to smile at his roommate as he walked in and noticed Picallo laying on his bunk.

"Hey, Tony. You feeling okay?" His voice was weak and soft, but it felt stronger than it had before he went to the moon pool. 

In a very un Picallo-like move, Tony sent Lucas a mean-looking glance and turned back to stare at the bottom of Lucas' bunk. "No, I'm not."

Suprised and hurt, Lucas quickly sat in his computer chair and ran through his actions over the past 48 hors to see what he could have done to upset Tony so much. He had never seen his roommate this upset even when he had failed his officer's exam. Finding nothing noteworthy, he turned his attention back to the man lying on the bunk.

"Do you want to talk?" Tony bolted upright at this. He looked at the confused 19-year-old incredulously. 

"Ensign Lucas Walenczek is asking me, lowly seaman Tony Picallo if I want to talk?!" He almost laughed. "You, who just 48 hors ago, was moping around this room, with your better than thou attitude, once again shoving away my attempts to help, wants to talk?!" He stopped, breathing heavily. "You don't understand," he added bitterly. "You didn't even..."

"What, Tony?" He asked, defensive. "What didn't I do this time? No matter what I do or don't do, I end up disappointing and upsetting someone. My father, Captain Bridger, and especially you! Just because I don't open up and discuss my pitiful existence with every person on this boat doesn't mean I deserve being yelled at!" He was standing now, hands clenched into fists at his side.

"You don't get it, do you Wolenczak?! You call yourself Jim's friend, but you're too wrapped up in your own problems to notice that he's dead. Dead, Lucas! That means he 'aint never comin' back!" By now, Tony had joined Lucas standing, and the two stood inches apart in the center of the room. "Do you even feel sad? Have you shed a single tear? You didn't even have the decency to come to the reception. Jim was our friend, Lucas, and you were to selfish to even acknowledge his life!"

Lucas' voice was quiet with rage. "You don't know the first thing about it, Tony. You don't know me. You've never really tried. None of you have; even Jim."

Suddenly, Lucas saw stars as Piccolo's fist made contact with his jaw, sending him sprawling. Shocked, he looked up at Tony with angry eyes, holding his jaw with his hand. Tony's face was a mask of pure anger, and as he tried to push his emotions down, he found that there was no more room left. His hand moved, almost by itself, but before he could make contact with Piccolo's face, the ex-con caught it and used his other hand to punch Lucas in the stomach. Before he could catch his breath, Piccolo slammed into him and had him pushed up against the wall. His hands moved to Lucas' throat, and Lucas' feet kicked outward, hitting nothing as his hands tried to pry Piccolo's grip off his throat. He tried to make a sound, but when he opened his mouth nothing came out. As his vision started to get blurry, his panic started to rise.

He heard a new voice then, but he was too far gone, and couldn't make out who it was or what the owner was saying. Then, suddenly, Piccolo's vice-like grip on his neck gave way and he collapsed onto the floor, coughing and gasping in the sweet air so fast that it burned his throat on the way down.

~

Tim O'Neill walked sown the hallway towards mammal engineering. He hadn't seen Lucas at the funeral or at the reception; in fact, he hadn't seen Lucas all day. No one had. He was worried about his friend, because, knowing Lucas, he had holed up inside his room with his emotions, not letting anyone in. Tim had experience with this; his whole life he had been pushing his fear, hurt and pain deep down inside himself, thinking that it would just go away. And it would, for a while. Then, when he least expected it or wanted it, it would all come back up in one huge burst. He didn't want that for Lucas.

He stopped at the door and knocked quietly, his eyes widening in suprise as the door opened and he saw what was going on inside. 

"Tony!" He ran over to where Piccolo was glaring at Lucas' panicked face. "What are you doing?!" Piccolo didn't look up or give any indication that he knew about Tim's presence. "Tony, let him go!" Tim placed his hand on Tony's shoulder, and his grip on Lucas' throat gave a bit. "Tony," he said, more quietly, "you're going to kill him." Piccolo closed his eyes and dropped his hands to his sides as Lucas slid coughing to the floor.

Grabbing his PAL, Tim dropped to his knees beside Lucas' gasping form. "O'Neill to Medbey-- I need someone down here in Lucas and Tony's quarters right away!"

The voice of Dr. Perry responded. "Acknowledged. Will be right down." Tim glanced up at Tony who was backing up, hands running through his hair with a frantic look on his face.

"Tony, you'd better get outa' here." He hesitated, looking down at Lucas' still breathless form. 

"Lucas, I--"

"Go, Tony." Lucas' voice was quiet and raspy, but Tony could hear the steel anger behind his words. Cursing, he slammed his fist into the door frame as he left.


	3. Chapter 3

What Doesn't Kill...  
part three

"Mr. Picallo, can you please explain to me what the hell possessed you to attack Ensign Walenczak yesterday?" Hudson was pacing angrily in front of Picallo in his office. He stopped suddenly and the two stood nose to nose in the middle of the room.

Picallo stared strait ahead and responded, "Sir, all I can say is that Ensign Walenczak and I were having an argument and it got out of hand. I'm sorry, sir, and I'm fully prepared to accept any punishment you think is fitting."

"Mr. Picallo, you realize what hitting a superior officer constitutes. There's only so much that I can do for you before regulations kick in."

Picallo gulped. He knew all too well. "Yes, sir."

"I don't understand, seaman. You tried so hard to make the officer's exam and then you go and blow it all by getting in a fist fight! Why would you let yourself get carried away like that? After all you've done..."

Picallo didn't know how to respond to Hudson's sudden change in tone. He hesitated a bit before looking his captain in the eyes and responding. "I guess old habits are hard to break. Sir."

It took a long time for Hudson to reply, but when he did, his voice had hardened back into command mode. "I don't buy that, Mr. Picallo, and I'm afraid that that's not good enough." Tony stood a bit straighter and once again fixed his gaze on the far wall. "Anthony Picallo, you are hereby stripped of the rank of Warrant Officer and confined to the brig for ten days. Dismissed."

~

Lonnie Henderson looked around the cramped mess hall and sighed. She was later to dinner than usual, and now she had hit rush hour in the mess. Spotting an empty chair at a table in the back, she picked up her tray and went over to join the group already seated there. 

"Hey, guys." Lucas, Tim, and Ford looked up from their conversation as she set her tray on the table. "Have ya'll seen Tony around anywhere? He was supposed to meet me at 1600." Quickly she added, "He wanted me to help him study some more." She hadn't even had to look at Ford; she could feel his glare. At the mention of Picallo, Lucas looked down at his food and started pushing at it absently. She ignored both of them and went on. "He never showed up and I haven't seen him anywhere. Hey Lucas--you're his roommate. Have you seen him?" He looked up as she sat.

"Lonnie..." Ford tried to warn her, but it was too late.

"Lucas!" She exclaimed, seeing the nasty bruise that had formed on the young man's jaw. "What happened to you?!"

Uncomfortable with the situation and still too angry and hurt by Picallo to trust himself to talk about him, that he frantically tried to think of any excuse to leave. 

"Uh, I've got a lot of work to do. Hudson asked me to, uh, write this program." Hurriedly, before he could dig the hole any deeper, he stood up. "See you later."

"What was that about?" Confused, Lonnie followed Lucas with her eyes as he walked out the door. Tim and Ford exchanged looks, making Lonnie even more frustrated. "What? Will somebody please tell me what's going on?"

"Tony is in the brig." Ford finally confessed.

"What?! Why?"

"Well, yesterday Tim walked into Lucas and Tony's quarters and found Lucas pinned against the wall--with Tony's hands around his neck. From what I've heard, they had an argument over something, and Tony lost it and attacked him."

Lonnie was floored. "What? I don't believe it. What could have been said to make Tony lose control like that?"

"Well, Lonnie, old habits are hard to break." Ford commented as he turned back to his food. Personally, he was glad that Picallo was in the brig. That was he couldn't get near Lonnie. Ford had warned him just last week about keeping his relationship with Lonnie professional. For a while, at least, he wouldn't have to worry.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Uh-oh. "Well, I just mean that Tony was a convict for a lot of years, and he picked up some bad habits that are hard to break. He's just not navy officer material, that's all."

"How can you say that?! Tony has pushed himself incredibly hard over the past months to be better than he was. Every day he worked so that he could gain the respect of people like you. I thought that he had gained at least that much from his commanding officer, but I guess it was too much to ask for, Commander." Ford groaned. It wasn't good when she used his rank when addressing him. "I'll see you later, sir." Abruptly, she stood up and exited the room.

~

Lucas rushed back to his quarters. He wasn't ready to deal with this yet. The fight, which had been so one-sided that it could barely be called a fight, had been the final and ultimate betrayal in a string of conflicts that had ripped Lucas apart. Wanting to do anything but think about real life, Lucas plopped himself down in his chair and booted up his computer. He fidgeted a few minutes and ran his hands through his hair while he waited.

As soon as the computer was up and running, he noticed a small blip at the top of the screen. 

"Search results=3"

He sat back, shocked. His results...he had almost forgotten about his search with all that had happened. Now he wasn't so sure whether or not he wanted to know what the search had turned up. The memories...he didn't think that he could handle dragging up the past.

Thoughts flew through his head at a million miles-a-minute. Was it his father? Was he still alive? If he was, why hadn't he tried to contact his son when seaQuest returned? Or was it his mother? Had she re-married? Did she have any more children? Did she even remember him?

Lucas' fear of the unknown was great, but his curiosity if what he could find out was greater. With a sigh, he moved the mouse to the flashing words at the top of the screen and, after a moment's hesitation, clicked.

[2] Drake, Nicholas and Juliana

[1] Walenczak, Lawrence

Lucas stared at the screen, not sure of what to do next. He couldn't think of the last time he had thought about Juliana and Nick. Juliana; that name brought back so many memories. Juliana had been his first, and only, girlfriend. Their attraction had been obvious from the moment Lucas had stepped on Node 3, and their relationship had continued long after he left. God, she had been so beautiful. ..he wondered if she remembered him. It had been, for her, 12 years since they had seen each other. Would she even want to see him again? 

His heart skipped a beat as he read the second result listed on the screen. "Walenczak, Lawrence." Lucas knew him better as Dad. A dead calm washed over him. His face started to flush, and he seemed to be stuck right where he was, immobilized by the name that had materialized out of the past.

Lucas' father was only that in name. He had always been too busy with his projects to take any time for his son. Lucas could always sense the uneasiness between them and had even gotten used to it. But after living on the seaQuest, without his father calling or writing, he had gotten sick of it. The last time he had spoken to his father was before Hyperion. The entire crew had been given a two-week leave while seaQuest dry-docked at New Cape Quest for some refitting. When he had called his father to let him know that he would be coming home, his Dad had told hi, that he would be staying at the office for a few weeks closing a deal to re-try his failed World Power Project. Lucas would just have to try his mother. Tired of being hurt and feeling neglected by his father, Lucas had blown up at him. He had screamed things like, "That project is more your baby than I am!" and "What kind of father sends his son to live on military sub and then doesn't let him come home during leave?" When his father had tried to say something in his defense, Lucas had angrily told him where he could shove it and had shut off the vidlink.

And that was it. To Lucas, Captain Bridger had been more of a father than Lawrence ever had. And that made the captain's betrayal all the worse. So now here he was, staring at a name on his computer screen. He asked himself if he was ready to face his father again. He wasn't sure.

But he had to do something. Lucas needed closure; he needed an ending to that part of his life. If he was ever going to face the future, he needed to be free of his past. Without thinking any farther so as not to lose his nerve, he clicked on the first name listed.

He didn't know how he felt about what he saw next. It wasn't fear, or sadness, or even anger. He felt...happy. On the screen in front of him, Lucas found himself staring at an article from the Cape Quest Daily, printed on May 1, 2026.

"Jason and Sylvia Drake are proud to announce the engagement of their son, Nicholas to Juliana McQueen, daughter of James and Laura McQueen. The wedding is to take place on..."

Lucas didn't have to read the rest of the article, though he noticed that an address and a vidlink number followed it. For a moment, he didn't know what to think. Then he smiled. His two friends from Node 3, married? For the first time in what felt like months, he started to laugh. Letting it all out, he laughed until he doubled over in his chair. 


	4. Chapter 4

What Doesn't Kill...  
part four

Lonnie Henderson looked through the hole on the door that led to the brig. Picallo lay on the small cot inside, arm over his eyes, trying to rest. She sighed. She had tried in vain since leaving the mess hall earlier that evening to understand how Picallo could have been so stupid, but she hadn't been able to figure it out. They had tried so hard together to push him away from his past, towards a better future, but he had thrown all that away for the sake of an argument. And with Lucas! The two were best friends, or so she had thought. She felt like she needed to know what transpired between them, so she could better understand why Picallo had lost control. She knew Hudson better than to hope he would keep the incident off of Tony's record. It would go down, and haunt Tony for the rest of his career, if he even had one now. He was so damn promising," she thought to herself. Why did he lose control? Why? Damn him! If Captain Hudson made him leave the shipÉ

Suddenly it hit her. Was she so upset because of the ramifications on Tony's career or because she didn't want him to leave? Over the past few months, because of their long work sessions, the two had developed a special bond. It was more than just friendship, but Lonnie was too scared to admit that it was more than platonic. She loved Ford... didn't she?

Nodding to the guard, she heard a buzz and the door clicked open. Picallo didn't move as she entered the room and closed the door behind her.

"Tony?"

He responded without moving a muscle. "What do you want, Lonnie?"

"Tony..."

"If you're here to tell me how stupid I was, get in line. If you wanna tell me how I threw my career away, don't bother. I've already heard that speech. So unless you've got some new material-"

"Why, Tony?" The simple question seemed to break down the barrier he had erected around himself. Maybe Lonnie wasn't here to berate him one more time. Maybe she really cared about him...

"Once I figure that out, I'll let ya' know." He rolled over onto his side and faced the wall so that she couldn't see the tears that were swelling in his eyes like high tide. "It was justÉ Jim's death shook me up, ya' know? It shook us all up. Except Lucas. I mean, he didn't even seem to be bothered by it at all. Yeah, he came to the funeral but he just seemed so... distant. Like he wanted to be anywhere else but where he was."

"I don't think Lucas has been very happy lately, Tony. He never seemed like navy-type to me before, and I think he's having a hard time adjusting. He's a genius and sometimes it's hard to remember that he's only an 18-year-old kid."

"Yeah, well, maybe that's why everyone loves protecting him and doing him favors while smucks like me get demoted and thrown in the brig."

"Tony--"

"It's true, Lonnie!" He turned around and sat up to face her. "Lucas thinks he's all hard done by, but he's got it all! He's a friggin genius, he's 18-years-old and he's already an Ensign; he had Captain Bridger strung around his little finger, and--"

"That's just it, Tony- had. He had Captain Bridger wrapped around his little finger, but he's gone, and I don't know what happened when he came back with section 7, but it shook Lucas up badly. Look, Tony," Lonnie lowered her voice and sat down on the bunk beside him. "We all lost a lot when we came back from Hyperion. Friends, relatives, lovers- all ten years ahead of us and moving on with their lives. We are each other's family now, and this is especially important for Lucas. We've seen him grow up, and we all know that Captain Bridger was like an adopted father for him. I think that he really felt betrayed and lost when he left. We have to support each other."

Tony looked up at her then, his tear-streaked face only inches from hers. "Lonnie, you're the only one on this ship who understands me, and the only one who cares."

"That's not true, Tony. Everyone cares about you."

"Not Lucas; not anymore."

"Lucas is very forgiving, Tony. Give him time."

A few seconds of tense silence passed before Tony decided. For months he had been anxiously awaiting the right time to tell Lonnie how he felt, threats from Commander Ford or otherwise. Now, when he knew the moment was finally here, he hesitated. How would she react? What if he ruined their entire relationship because he couldn't control his hormones? But, looking at her face, he decided to throw caution to the wind.

Reaching up and cupping her face in his hands, he pressed his lips against hers. Taken aback, Lonnie resisted at first but then melted into submission. That one kiss seemed to last for hours. All the cliches popped into Tony's head at once; stars were twinkling, fireworks booming, and even the earth stopped moving.

When they finally parted, he opened his eyes and whispered, "Wow."

Then it seemed that the world came rushing in at once. The guard coughed outside in the hall and abruptly, she stood and moved to the door. 

"I, uh, I have to go on duty."

Then, suddenly, she was gone, and Picallo was once again left alone in his cell.

~

"...so Hudson said that it would be best to give me my own quarters, considering what happened. He said that it should have been done when I signed up anyway, but he'd just never gotten around to doing it."

"That's great. Do you like having your own space again?" Lucas looked down at his hands.

"I did at first, but... I don't know. I guess I just wish that it had happened under different circumstances, ya' know?"

"Have you talked to him, yet?"

Lucas looked up from contemplating his hands folded in his lap to face the image looking back at him from the vidlink. He was silent for a while until he looked back down. "No. I can't, Juliana. I just... it's complicated. Every time I see him I just don't know what to say. I don't know..." He sighed and ran his hands through his hair.

"Lucas, I know it's not easy, but you can't work together until you talk to him. It doesn't have to be a huge discussion, but you at least need to be able to carry on a conversation. Am I making any sense?"

"Yeah, I know. It's just... Tony can hold a grudge. What if he still hates me?"

"Lucas, I'm sure he never hated you. Tony was a good friend to you before, and something like that doesn't just go away."

"Yeah. I guess you're right. Thanks."

"Anytime. Look, Lucas, I've gotta run. Nick's been dying to show me this new project of his, and he's going to kill me if I keep him waiting much longer."

"Okay. Well, I'll talk to you later then."

"Yeah. And Lucas- it's great to hear from you again. Be careful; I don't want to lose you twice."

"I will, Juliana. Bye."

"Bye."

Lucas smiled as the vidlink shut off. It had been a few months since the incident in his quarters, and he'd finally gotten the nerve to call his old flame. He'd dialed the number twice before he'd actually let it go through, he'd been so nervous. I mean, what if she didn't remember him? She probably thought he was dead; did he have the right to barge back into her life all of a sudden?

He finally had decided that yes, he did have the right, and he would do it. Now he felt like 100 pounds had been lifted off his shoulders. She had been so happy to see him; it almost made up for the lousy couple of months he had been having. Almost.

~

Lucas stared at the ceiling, the darkness playing tricks with his eyes and making him see shapes in the metal. Frustrated, he closed his eyes and rubbed them, sighing at his restlessness. He looked over at the chronometer beside his bed. It read "04:30." Damn. He had to be on the bridge in two and a half hours, and he hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep. His phone call with Juliana kept plaguing him. He knew that he should talk to Tony and forgive him, but it was just too hard. The fact that Tony had actually accused him of not caring about Jim and not grieving at his death... the words still stung, and the accusation rang fresh in his mind every time he saw Tony. For it being such a big ship, he sure saw Picallo a lot, too. 

He looked over at the swim tube that ran along his room. Thankfully, Hudson had given Lucas a room with swim tubes, a fact that he hadn't just let pass him by. The water played on the opposite wall, the patterns calming him into almost a trance-like state. A knock on the door ripped him back into reality. 

He opened the door to an empty hallway. He looked down both sides of it, but it was like the whole ship was asleep except for him. He shook his head and laughed at his obvious insanity until he saw it. The envelope lay on the floor in front of him, left behind like a forgotten childhood toy. He picked it up and, once more making sure that no one had appeared in the hallway, went back inside his room.

Scrawled onto the envelope was his name. He recognized the handwriting as belonging to Tony. Sitting hard in surprise onto his bed, he opened the envelope and took out the note stuffed inside. It read:

Lucas, 

This is incredibly hard to write. I'm not sure exactly his to say this; you know how lousy I am at expressing my feelings. It's just... these past few months have been hell on earth for me, and I know exactly why. I think you do, too.

God, Lucas, I was so stupid! I didn't mean what I said that day. I was just hurt and angry and grieving. I know that's no excuse, but it's all I can give. I lost control. I haven't lost control like that since I came on board this tug, and to think that I did it with you... I still cringe every time I think about it.

I'm sorry. God, I'm sorry.

Lucas, you were one of the first people here to accept me. You didn't freak out because of my gills, and you barely complained about having to share your room with a freak- to me, anyway. I want to thank you for that. You're my buddy, Luke, and I hope that you somehow still think of me as yours.

-Tony

~

"...so Kreig decides to give them to the Admiral!" The table burst out laughing. "Can you believe it?" Tim brushed a tear from his eye as he finished telling the story of Ben Kreig and the infamous glowing fish poop.

"Kreig sounds like quite a character," Lonnie commented, poking at her half-finished plate of food. At least she thought that it was food... "I can't believe that the captain put up with him for so long. What'd Bridger do then?" Freddie and Lonnie leaned foreword instinctively, knowing that Bridger would've come up with an interesting punishment for the lieutenant.

"Well, Bridger decided..." Lucas tuned out the rest of Tim's story, all of his attention focused on the person who had just walked into the mess. Picallo, tray in hand, started toward the table where the senior officers sat, then stopped abruptly when his eyes met Lucas'. He turned away and started towards a table on the opposite side of the room. His heart beating, Lucas held up his hand and waved him over to their table. Their eyes met again, and for he briefest second, Lucas swore he could see the glint of tears in Tony's eyes. Then the moment was over, and Lucas returned to the conversation at the table as Picallo pulled up a chair and sat down.

"...the whole hallway smelled for weeks!" The table erupted into laughter again.

"Captain Bridger liked to give second chances, didn't he?" Lonnie laughed.

"Yeah. He gave everyone a second chance." Lucas smiled at Tony, and he smiled back, knowing how hard it had been for Lucas to forget his pride and forgive him.

* * *


	5. Chapter 5

What Doesn't Kill...  
part five

Six months later, Hudson glared at Lucas as he opened the ward room door and walked in.

"Mr. Walenczak, does it always take you this long to get to a meeting with your captain or am I just lucky?"

"I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again." Lucas felt his face flush as he took his seat. 

"You seem to be saying that a lot lately. You'd better be ready to let me collect."

"Yes, sir." Hudson glared for a few moments before addressing the rest of the senior staff that had already been seated when Lucas walked in.

"As most of you know, the original seaQuest was equipped with a hyper-reality probe." He hit a few buttons on the table and schematics for the seaQuest 4600 I flashed across the screen on the back wall. "Run by Lieutenant Commander Hitchcok, the HR Probe was able to go places that were unsuitable for a crew member to go." Hudson hit the button again and the screen went black. "When the seaQuest 4600 II was built, that feature was left of the re-design."

Lucas knew the answer to this one. Good lord, he had helped build her. "That was because the design was too difficult to maneuver around and maintain control."

"That may have been, ensign, but in ten years that sort of technology had improved ten fold. Our orders are to proceed to New Cape Quest and re-wire this ship for its new HR-probe."

Lucas couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did the UEO understand what kind of manpower and time that kind of project would take? Not to mention training the person to use it, and... the problems were endless. "Sir, what sort of time table are we talking about?"

"The UEO is giving us two weeks to get operational."

"What?" This time Henderson spoke up as well. As an engineer, she was also aware of the complexity of the task they were undertaking. "With all due respect, sir, they can't be serious! Two weeks? That's barely enough time to wire the ship let alone run tests to make sure it's operational."

"I'm well aware of that fact, Henderson, but we are on the brink of war. The UEO needs us out patrolling and Ôkeeping the peace.' Two weeks. Dismissed."

~

"So... are you proud of her?" Henderson asked, smirking as she handed a tool to Lucas who was sprawled out beneath a consul on the bridge. They were ahead of schedule by almost three days. Together, they had been working night and day for the past week trying to install the new program. The entire crew was off on shore leave, except for the twenty or so engineering personnel they needed. 

"Proud of who?" His voice was distorted, almost seeming disembodied coming from under the station. But Henderson knew that he was well aware of who she was talking about.

"Juliana. Her company has done pretty well. I mean, they designed this HR probe that we're installing."

"I hadn't forgotten, Henderson. With the way people are carrying on, you'd think she'd won the Nobel peace prize or something."

"Ooh, is that jealousy I sense?"

"What?!" Lucas was caught so off guard by her comment that he tried to sit up, but the only ended up smacking his head on the bottom of the consul. "Ouch!"

Henderson giggled as he wriggled out from underneath the consul and accepted the cloth she gave him to wipe his hands clean.

"I'm not jealous, Henderson. I'm very happy for her."

Her smile broadened. "Sure you are, Lucas."

He glared at her and powered up his consul. "Okay. We're on-line and ready to begin the tests." He gestured to the equipment lying on the deck. "You want the honors?"

"Sure." While she readied herself for the probe. Lucas used his PAL to inform the crew stationed at various points around the ship that the trials were commencing. After hearing enough "Aye's," he looked over to see if Henderson was ready. He burst out laughing at the spectacle in front of him.

Henderson sat in the chair, gloved hands raised as if she were surrendering to the police. On her head sat a square-ish headpiece that made her look like a demon from some old twentieth century B movie. 

"Ensign Walenczak, if you are laughing at me, I just might have to resort to the chain of command."

"I wouldn't dream of it, sir."

"I thought so," she responded with more than a hint of a smile. "Now let's get this show on the road."

"Powering up now." Lucas' hands flew over the consul and a hum began to emanate from the equipment on Henderson. "Initiating program now." With a final push of a button, Henderson was plunged onto darkness. After a few moments, she started to make out textures in the water. Then, the sea suddenly exploded around her as the probe burst from the seaQuest and into the ocean. She was filled with awe. It was as it Lonnie herself was swimming out there. She turned her hands and the probe turned with her. After a few seconds, the awesome sight of the seaQuest filled her vision. It truly was magnificent. 

"Okay, Henderson." She recognized Lucas' voice in her ear. "Take it for a spin." She balled her hands into fists and suddenly she was off, traveling at an incredible speed through the water. A smile fell uncontrollably onto her face. "Whoa, HendersonÑ not that fast."

"Aww, Lucas. Come on; you used to be so much fun."

"Slow it down, Lonnie." Sighing, she complied. Un-balling her fists, she felt the probe slowly come to a halt in the water. "Okay, now take it down." Arching her hands so that they were angled downwards, she saw the sea floor rushing at her. 

"Okay, Lonnie. You're deep enough. Pull up." She didn't move a muscle. "Pull up!" Again, there was no response, but was that a smile hinting on the edge of her mouth? 

"Henderson, you're gonna hit the floor! Pull up!" Lucas watched as the depth gauge on his screen plummeted. 100 feet.. 70 feet... 50 feet... 30 feet... 10 feet... 

"Henderson--" and she pulled up then, the smile spreading across her face.

"Lonnie," Lucas warned, unable to keep the smile completely off his own face. "Don't you dare do that to me again..." He trailed off, noticing that the smile was gone from her face, replaced by a frown of concentration. "What is it?"

"I think the probe is picking something up... I'm seeing some colors in the water."

Now all business, Lucas looked over Lonnie's shoulder at the video feed the probe was sending back. From around the corner of a rock wall, a thin line of pink streamed into view like horizontal smoke. "That's one of the probe's new features. It has sensors that pick up heat signatures or pollutants in the water and then displays them as colors. Pink means that there is something contaminating the water. It looks like it's coming from right around that rock outcropping." He pointed on the screen. "Go around there and let's see what's up."

Lonnie ignored his blatant insubordination, too caught up in her curiosity to even give it more than a moment's notice. She moved her arms and guided the probe around the corner.

"Oh my god..." Imbedded into the rocks was a small shuttle. At least, it had been a shuttle; there wasn't much of it left. Pieces of metal floated in the water, creating a hazard for the probe. Frustrated, Lonnie wrestled with the controls, trying to make her way to the damaged shuttle. Struggling, she finally made it to one of the cracked windows. They weren't so deep that the pressure would've crushed the shuttle completely, so a small air pocket was left inside. Lucas peered closer to the screen, trying to make out an image, hoping someone was still alive.

What was that; a shoulder maybe? Yes, and there was the arm! He followed along down to the fingers when he saw movement... yes, the fingers were twitching. He was alive!

"Lonnie--"

"Yeah, I saw it, Lucas."

Quickly running to the ensign at communications, he assumed his most commanding voice. "Ensign Thomas, what's the fastest mini-sub still docked?"

"Uh, there's a shuttle docked in docking bay three, sir."

"Lucas--" Lonnie had already disentangled herself from the HR equipment and was zipping up her uniform jacket when he turned around. "Call Picallo. Tell him to get in that shuttle and bring those people back." 

"Yes, sir." Lucas pulled out his PAL from his uniform and spoke into it.

"Picallo."

There was no response.

"Picallo, this is Lucas. Respond." He banged the device with his hand in frustration. "Why isn't he responding?"

"Here." Henderson handed him hers. "Try mine." He went through the same routine, still without a response.

"Ensign Thomas," he called out. "Contact Seaman Picallo and tell him to report to Docking Bay three."

"Yes, sir." There was a moment's silence before he went on. "Sir, communications aren't working. I can't raise him on his PAL."

"Damn it."

"Lucas, you have a little bit of medical training, don't you?"

"I learned a thing or two under Dr. Westphalen, yeah."

"Okay. You stay here and get a med-kit ready. I'll go get the sub."

"Lonnie, I can't let you do that. You're the highest ranking officer, and--?"

"That's an order, Ensign."

"Just... be careful, Lonnie." She smiled reassuringly at him before walking out the clam doors.

~

Lonnie's heart was beating a mile a minute as she drove towards the wreckage. She hoped she was going to get there soon enough. The trip seemed to take forever. With each second she took she knew that it meant one less second for he people in the sub. In reality, it had only been a few minutes before she turned the corner and came upon the sub, but it had felt like hours.

Her eyebrows raised in confusion, Lonnie slowed the shuttle to a halt and stared at what lay in front of her. 

"What the hell..." Sitting on the ocean floor was a sub like she had never seen. Sleek in shape, the black metal almost blended into the rock wall behind it. It was shaped almost like a small version of the seaQuest, and it was definitely not the wreckage she had expected. Suddenly, its lights came on and her consul beeped "INCOMING MESSAGE."

She didn't know what to do. She had never seen a sub like that before, so she didn't know if she could out run it. By the look of the sub she severely doubted it, and even if she could, she couldn't lead them back to the seaQuest, whoever they were. Her shuttle didn't have any weapons, save lasers, so she couldn't very well start a fight.

Weighing her options, she decided that she had no choice and pressed the button to receive the message.

"UEO shuttle, this is the Macronesian vessel Leviathan. Stand down and prepare to be boarded. I repeat, stand down and prepare to be boarded."

_Nononono... this couldn't be happening. Not again! Sweet Jesus, not again..._

"UEO sub, stand down or else we will fire."

Her hysterics growing, Lonnie's mind kept flashing back to that day..._ children screaming... the cold barrel of a gun... the even colder face of the Macronesian dictator..._

"S-standing down."_ Oh God..._

Rising off the sea floor, the Leviathan glided over to where the shuttle floated like a snake curling around its prey. Lonnie barely heard the clank of the docking arm through her numb mind.

_A young boy... the scent of burnt flesh as the laser pierced through his heart... Brody, lying limp in her arms as they raced back to seaQuest..._

She did hear the click of the pistol being cocked, though, as a figure came up behind her and pointed it at her head.

"Take us to seaQuest."

~

Pacing the floor of the bridge, Lucas checked his watch. 25 minutes. Something had happened. She'd been gone too long. _Damn it,_ he thought._ I knew I should've gone._

"Thomas."

"Yes, sir."

"Do you have a lock on Lieutenant Henderson's position?"

"Yes sir, she's--" he paused, listening to something coming in over his headset. "She just asked for permission to board, sir."

Huh? Why would she have asked permission... "Well, grant it and ask if anyone needs medical attention." He had a bad feeling about this.

"Sir, she's not responding. I think communications are messing up again."

_Damn it!_ Grabbing the med-kit he had prepared, he started to head towards docking bey three when an alarm sounded, stopping him in his tracks._ Oh shit..._

~

_Blood was everywhere, staining even her very soul. Brody looked at her with weak, scared eyes. "Lonnie..."_

The scene flashed in her mind. Memories surfaced that she had never wanted to think about again; memories full of pain, hurt, and anger.

One of her captors pulled her up by the elbow as soon as she had finished docking procedures. Ramming his pistol into her back, he whispered into her ear, "Don't try anything."

_Convulsing, Brody ripped off his dog tags and shoved them into her palm..._

The docking doors opened and she was led out into the deserted bay. Several men filed out behind her and moved quickly over to the computer terminals, knowing exactly what to do. Their familiarity with the system scared her more than she would have liked to admit.

"Don't move," the voice whispered in her ear. "I'll be watching you." The gun was removed from her back as he slithered away to help one of his men.

_Struggling, Brody's pain-filled voice croaked out his last words as his body gave into the pain. "With your shield... or on it..."_

Suddenly, Lonnie's head became clear. She knew what she had to do. Glancing at her captor, she inched towards the far wall, one step at a time. She held her breath until she reached it. Reaching down with her hand, she closed her eyes briefly and pushed the alarm. 

~

Lucas dropped he med-kit, spilling its contents all over the floor. He ran over to a terminal and started barking orders. 

"Seal the clam doors and get me the security video feed from docking bay three. I need a sensor scan run over this entire ship ASAP so we can find out what the hell is going on!"

~

Lonnie had little time to celebrate before the gun went off. The force of the bullet hitting her body threw her into the wall and she slid down to the floor. She glanced down at her chest and placed a hand to her stomach. When she looked at it again, it was red. Blood._ I've been shot. Wow._

Then the pain hit. She gasped and doubled over, sweat beading out onto her forehead. From somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew that it would all be over soon, and she would be able to melt into the blazing pain...

In that moment, Lenore Ellen Henderson knew she was going to die, and she accepted it. She had always been afraid of death, but when faced with the certainty of it, she was calm. All she could do was hope that her life had made a difference. She surprised herself that, in these last few moments of her life, it wasn't Jonathan's face that came to her, or Tony's. It was Jim's. She saw the image that had haunted her dreams, but now it gave her the courage to face her death with dignity.

Lying on the cold hard floor, Lonnie Henderson, of Fortsmith, Wyoming, closed her eyes as she felt a warm glow on her face.

She used her last breath to whisper the words, "On it, Jim." She smiled one last time, took her last shaking breath, and gently closed her eyes. 


	6. Chapter 6

What Doesn't Kill...  
part six

Lucas fell back into his chair, numb. God, no... He had just watched the security vid feed from the docking bay, and he was having trouble accepting what he saw. That couldn't be real. Lonnie couldn't be... Stop it, Lucas. You can grieve later. Right now you have a boat to save. 

"Sir?" Lucas gave no response, and the Ensign at sensors had to repeat himself to catch his attention. "Sir."

Shaking the grief off for the moment, Lucas got out of the chair and walked over to the consul. "Yes."

"Sensors are picking up ten life signs in docking bay three, one near the moon pool, three on C-deck, four on B-deck, three in med-bay, and three in the engine room, plus the three of us here on the bridge."

Damn... "Seal off the docking bay."

"Too late, sir. They're starting to move." Damn it all to hell!

Lucas turned towards the communication consul. "Get me Captain Hudson."

"I can't, sir. Communications are completely out." 

"Let me in." The ensign moved away and Lucas took his place. Stretching his fingers before getting to work, he racked his brain to try and figure out anything that might work. Start with the basics, Wolenczak, he told himself. He typed in the command for e-band, and a beep told him that it wasn't going to work. Forget simple. He could use the whiskers to triangulate their signal and then bounce it off a couple of satellites back to New Cape Quest. His hands flew and he muttered incomprehensible words under his breath as he worked. He watched as lines on the satellite map were drawn from one, then the other, until finally the words "LINK-UP COMPLETE" flashed across the screen.

"Yes!" He stood up as Captain Hudson's Neanderthal-like image appeared on the screen.

"Ensign, what is going on here?" He ordered.

"Sir, I don't have much time." He took a deep breath and readied himself for his captain's anger. He knew Hudson wouldn't be happy with him after he learned that Lucas had managed to get seaQuest boarded by hostile terrorists. "seaQuest has been breached by persons unknown. Lieutenant Henderson is dead and there are ten life signs making their way towards the bridge right now. I need your orders, sir."

Hudson seethed for a few moments before he answered. "Ensign, use any force necessary. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"ANY force, Wolenczak. seaQuest is better off at the bottom of the ocean than in the hands of terrorists."

Lucas took a deep breath. "Yes, sir."

Hudson's face softened and he opened his mouth to say something else, but before he could get any sound out, the vid-screen went black. 

"No! Damn it!"

~

"No! Damn it!" Hudson's voice echoed through UEO headquarters.

"Captain Hudson, keep your voice down!" Secretary General MeGath quietly commanded.

Hudson glared angrily at the man. "My ship has been boarded by terrorists. One of my best officers is dead, leaving command to my science officer, and you expect me to be quiet?!?" He raged. 

"Oliver, if the seaQuest has been breached, we need to keep it quiet." He put up a hand to stop Hudson's tirade before he began. "Don't, captain. Listen to me for once in your career. President Bourne's propaganda machine has been working overtime as of late, and we're losing in the polls. If this war starts, I promise you that we will be seen as the bad guys. And if word gets out that we let our flagship get taken over--"

"They're not in control yet."

"Face the facts, Oliver. Ensign Wolenczak is a good science officer, but he is just that-- a science officer. He has no tactical training. seaQuest is lost, captain."

~

Piccolo was bored. He had been sitting by the moonpool for half and hour now, waiting for some communications from Henderson or Lucas on the bridge. He had been taking calculations and other observations down here at Lucas' request, though he had to admit that he didn't understand half of the data coming in from the probe. But thirty minutes ago, it had returned to seaQuest and he had expected some sort of message from the bridge about the next set of tests. Yet he had heard nothing, He had tried using his PAL and the vidlink, but he had been unable to contact the bridge, and he was starting to get scared.

He peered out the hatch and into the hallway, checking both directions for any signs of life. Something felt very wrong. He heard footsteps coming down the hall and saw the barrel of a gun aim around the corner. Before they could turn into the hallway, he ducked back into the room and grabbed a few re breathers off the shelf. Just as he heard voices approached the doorway, he dove unto the moonpool and swam towards the bridge.


	7. Chapter 7

What Doesn't Kill...  
part seven

Lucas was trying not to panic. How could the terrorists have stopped communications? Unless they somehow gained control of the system using the Dead Man's Codes... but they couldn't have those codes, could they? The only copy of the codes were in Secretary General MeGath's office, so there was no way possible... unless they had somehow hacked directly into the onboard system...

Damn it. They had stopped for a while in the docking bay, and sensors had shown an intruder in the systems... if they had over-ridden the communications from onboard the ship, then they could over-ride helm control and the bridge would be useless!

He had to stop them before they gained control. With a frantic pace, he started typing.

~

Lieutenant Murphree typed at the consul at a furious rate. So far, all was going to plan. He had cut off all ties the seaQuest had with the outside world, and now he was gaining on helm control. He paused a moment to pop his neck and push his glasses up onto his nose before getting back to work. Suddenly, he stopped and grunted in surprise and frustration.

"Commander!" Commander Pierce ran over at the Lieutenant's cry.

"What is it?"

"I've been locked out of the system!"

"What?!? Can they do that? How much had you accomplished?"

"I had yet to gain control of the helm, sir. Someone else was in the system and locked me out. The only way we can gain control of this ship now is by taking over the bridge." He looked back at his screen. "Man, whoever did this must have been elite."

"Lucas." A female voice spoke softly on the other side of Murphree.

"The boy?" Pierce exclaimed. "There's no way--"

"Don't underestimate Ensign Walenczak, Commander. You'll have to take the bridge."

~

Picallo navigated the long length of swim tubes with ease. Over the tours on seaQuest, he had learned every inch of Darwin's walkways, and they had proved a useful way of hiding from unwanted duties. In a matter of minutes, he had broken the surface of the pool in the bridge and he banged on the roof of the cover that enclosed the pool. 

Lucas' startled expression appeared above him then as he pressed the button that released the cover. "Tony, what the hell are you doing?"

"I just thought I'd take a swim. Hello; what do ya' think? I saw these commando-lookin' thugs in the hallway outside the moonpool, so I swam here Ôcause my PAL aint workin'." He took out the object for effect and banged it against the palm of his hand, sending droplets of water spraying everywhere. "I don't think it's ever goin' to work again, either. Here." He handed Lucas the rebreathers. "I grabbed these in case they were headed for the bridge.

"Good thinking, Tony."

"Thanks, Luke."

~

Lucas leaned over a consul and typed a few commands. In seconds, a cross-section of the seaQuest appeared on the screen, and little blue dots could be seen moving around the ship's interior.

"What is that?" Picallo asked, confused.

"A life scan. It picks up the heat signals that emanate from our bodies and puts them on the screen as blue dots." He peered at it a little closer. "Damn."

"What?"

"They've split." He pointed to a small group of dots working their way up the central corridor. "They're on their way here." Another group of dots had stayed on the docking bay, and the rest had started to spread out, apparently combing the boat for the seaQuest crew.

"We have to do something!"

"Like what, Picallo?!?" Frustration was gleaming from his eyes. "I don't have a clue what to do! I'm not a navy soldier; I'm just a stupid kid pretending to be a scientist."

"Lucas..."

"It's true, Tony! I've got no training for this! Hell, you're better suited to do this than I am!"

"But I'm not the one in charge!" Picallo grabbed Lucas by the shoulders as he said this, shaking him gently. "You're the one with the ensign stripes, Lucas. Captain Hudson trusted you enough to make you an officer. It's time you trusted yourself as well."

"But--"

"No, Lucas. You're an officer in the UEO navy and it's time you started acting like one."

Lucas stared at him for a moment, then dropped his eyes to the floor. Taking a deep breath, he collected himself and settled his nerves. "Okay. Let's shut down the maglev and seal the watertight doors. That should hold them back for a while."

Picallo smiled and let his arms drop. "Yes, sir."

"And Tony? Thanks."

~

Seaman Wesley Evans crawled through the air vents, sweat pouring down his face. He had climbed up into the crawl spaces right after the men in black had bursted into med-bay. They had gone after a few minutes, leaving him breathless under a bed. After grabbing a few medical supplies, he had pulled himself up into the air-ducks and had been there ever since. 

He stopped moving when the crawl-way split into two directions. Shit, he thought. Working in med-bay had never required a working knowledge of the crawl-ways, but he was starting to think that maybe he and Dr. Perry should start requiring it. That is, if he got out of this alive. At the moment, though, he had no clue which way to go. He peered down one fork, then the other, and decided there was absolutely no difference between the two. Closing his eyes, he silently counted, "Eanie, meanie, mienie, moe..." and started down the chosen corridor. 

~

"Luke, ya' gonna be done soon?" Tony paced nervously behind the row of sensor consul as Lucas feverously typed on one of the keyboards. 

"I'd be done faster if you would stop interrupting me, Tony," he snapped back. Picallo stopped pacing and tapped his foot, his boots making an annoying sound on the metal floor. They had long ago sent the two crewmembers serving on the bridge away by means of the swim tubes. If everything went to plan, they would all meet soon in the shuttle repair docks. That was, if Lucas could just finish in time...

"Do ya' think we slowed them down?"

"I don't know, Tony," Lucas sighed. "Go check the life-scan."

A few seconds later, Tony returned, his face white and dripping with sweat. "Uh, Lucas?"

"What, Tony?!?"

"They're right outside."

The room fell silent as Lucas and Tony looked at each other, dread written across both their faces. They were startled the next second as a giant banging came from the clam doors.

"Oh, shit!" Tony cried. "They're trying to break through the doors!"

Lucas threw himself back into his work, typing faster then he ever had before.

"Come on, Lucas!" Tony encouraged, but Lucas was concentrating too hard to notice.

Boom! Boom! The pounding on the other side of the doors grew louder with every passing second, and after a moments high pitched squeal started to accompany it.

"Lucas, the doors are giving way!" Tony's voice rose about three octaves.

"Yes!" Lucas finished typing with a flourish and pushed his chair away from the consul. The words "ENCRYPTION COMPLETE" flashed across every available screen. Grabbing the last rebreather, Lucas ran behind Tony towards the moonpool as a final screech came from the doors and they struggled open.

"Go, Tony!" Lucas yelled and with the flourish of a practiced diver, Tony dove into the pool a few feet away.

"Come on, Luke!" he yelled, seeing the terrorists catching up behind Lucas. Glancing behind him, Lucas doubled his efforts and made desperate leap for the pool.

Just as his feet left the ground, one of the terrorists dove for him and grabbed his ankle, making him fall to the floor. His head hit the side of the tank, dazing him.

"Tony... go!" he croaked out as he felt hands grip his arms and haul him to his knees.

Damn it! Tony screamed inside his head as he swam away, darting laser fire.


	8. Chapter 8

Father of Mine 

What Doesn't Kill...  
part eight

When Lucas could think clearly, he blinked a few times to clear his vision. He could feel something warm on his forehead and realized that he must be bleeding from where he hit his head. After he stopped seeing double, a woman stepped into his line of vision and spoke crisply to one of the men holding him. Roughly, he grabbed Lucas' hair and forced him to look the woman directly in her eyes.

"Lucas. It's been a while."

Lucas stared at the woman standing in front of him. Even though he had spoken to her over the vidlink a few months ago, the difference in her from the sixteen-year-old girl from his memory and the thirty-year-old woman standing in front of him was startling. Her slim figure and long, blond hair that hung down to her shoulders took his breath away. Contacts had replaced glasses, and her adolescent figure had matured into a woman's body.

"J-Juliana?" His shocked voice was barely a whisper.

She gave him a look that could have been pity before answering. "Don't be so surprised. A lot can happen to change a person in six months."

Lucas was speechless. He opened his mouth several times to try and say something. Finally, he was able to choke out, "Why?"

"Because the people you work for are corrupt! The UEO is this century's version of Nazi Germany, and someone's got to stop them."

"I don't understand. What happened to you?"

"Life happened to me, Lucas. I grew up. I got introduced to the real world." She paused, taking a deep breath before she began her story. She wasn't willing to let him know how much this was killing her. "The day that we talked, Nick was working in the lab downstairs. He had been working on military applications of our HR technology. He was such an idealist-- he believed full-heartedly in the UEO and wanted to do whatever he could to help preserve it against the Macs. He was a fool. As soon as they found out what he was doing, they sent section 7 after him. They said that they didn't want his work to get in the wrong hands, but I knew better. By the time I finished talking to you, they had destroyed everything in the lab and Nick was gone. That was six months ago, and I haven't seen or heard from him since. " Lucas was speechless. He knew in his heart that she was right-- only that it was section 7 that was corrupt, not the entire UEO. He knew that all too well...

"Jules..." She had to turn away then, the pain in his voice bringing tears to her eyes.

"The UEO must pay. They can't get away with destroying their own citizen's lives!"

"Jules, you're right." She spun around, surprised by his words. "What section 7 did was wrong, but believe me. The UEO probably had no clue what went on."

"What are you talking about?"

"Juliana, section 7 is the corrupt agency, not the UEO. The UEO is still a force for good and peace in the world, even with section 7. It's like saying the USA was corrupt because of the actions of the CIA. In time, someone will bring section 7 down. Trust me."

She was silent for a long time. Whether it was to ponder Lucas' words or to gain control of her emotions, only she knew. When she spoke again, her voice was tight and hard. "I can't trust anyone anymore, Lucas. I'm sorry."

~

Piccolo broke the surface of the water and, taking a few deep breaths to stop from hyperventilating, he looked around. Great. Just great. He was alone in the repair dock. Where were the others? They had left the bridge a good twenty minutes ago. Hauling himself out of the water and onto the metal grating covering the bay, he grabbed a towel that was lying on the floor and headed for a dry-docked shuttle. 

Sliding down the side of the sub, he took some more deep breaths to try and calm down. He ran his hands through his wet hair, before hitting the floor in frustration. What the hell was he supposed to do? Why did Lucas want to come here in the first place? It didn't make any sense. Other than the fact that he couldn't think why the terrorists would come down here, he had no idea what possible use being in the repair docks would be in regaining control of the ship.

God, he couldn't do this! He was nobody. He wasn't a genius like Lucas; he couldn't even stay in a stupid rank like Warrant Officer, for heaven's sake! How was he supposed to get the ship out of the hands of these terrorists alone? Alone... he had never felt so alone in his entire life. Not even in prison had he felt so helpless, so...

What was he doing? From some corner of his mind a voice spoke up. He had to try, no matter how impossible the odds seemed. Whoever these people were, there was no way that they could get their hands on the seaQuest. She was too powerful, too prestigious to fall into enemy hands. No, he decided. He would do whatever he could, no matter the consequences to gain control of this ship. Besides, Lucas was counting on him. 

Suddenly, Piccolo heard the scraping of a hatch opening, and footsteps cautiously enter the bay. He was immediately on his feet, crouched behind the protective shielding of the shuttle. He slowly peered around the side, trying in vain to see anything in the darkness. 

What was that? Over there, by the Stinger- he could have sworn he had seen something move. 

There it was again! This time he could distinctly see three figures moving swiftly to where he was hiding. 

_Okay, Piccolo, time to make talk into action,_ he told himself. Slowly he reached for his towel and wadded it up into a little ball. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he threw it as hard as he could across the shuttle to his left. A crashing sound reverberated throughout the room as the force of the towel toppled a supply cart filled with machinery parts. At the same time, he dove to the right and rolled behind a stack of crates.

He tried to slow his breathing as the figures ran over towards the direction that Tony had thrown the towel, but he was sure that they could hear him. One of the men stopped, and turned around, staring at Tony's hiding place as if he could see right through the crates. Piccolo held his breath and crouched lower, tensing, waiting to move until the man had walked past the crates and was continuing on to the other side. Then he kicked out his legs, catching the man completely off-guard and sending him flying to the floor. 

As soon as Piccolo saw the gun go flying, he dived towards it, grabbing it before it fell over the side of the grating and sank into the water. In the next instant he was up, gun cocked and aimed at the man lying on the floor, dazed. 

"Ensign Thomas?" Tony gasped at the figure lying on the floor in front of him, relieved. 

"Piccolo? Thank god." Tony laughed nervously, relieved at the sudden twist. Grasping his hand, he helped Thomas to his feet and passed him back his gun as they grinned at each other.

"I thought--"

"We thought--" They laughed again as they were joined by the other two and together they headed towards the shuttle that Piccolo had previously been hiding behind.

"What took you so long to get here?" Piccolo asked, after they had sat down.

"We stopped off at the armory to get these." Ensign Rusell held up a gun and two laser pistols, passing one of them to Tony. "They're fully charged and set to kill."

Tony looked up from inspecting the laser pistol. Even after all this time as a military officer, the weapon still felt alien in his hands. He had seen too many of his friends gunned down by weapons such as these. "Did you get there and back without meeting any of our new friends?"

"No such luck," Russell answered. "When we were exiting from the armory, one of the terrorists was walking down the hallway, looking in each of the rooms, I guess, for us." He laughed. "He'll be stuck in that room for some time."

"Have you come up with a plan?"

"A plan? We thought that Lucas would've had one by now. Where is he, anyway? Did he send you away for being annoying?"

He glared at Russell, then became serious before speaking. "Lucas was... they... they took the bridge." The three looked at him in shock, then all seemed to find somewhere else to fix their gaze. "I was able to get out in time, but Lucas wasn't so lucky."

"Then we're lost," Russell finally spoke after a long pause. "They have the bridge, they have a hostage... this is going to be impossible."

"It's not all that bad," Tony said, reassuringly. "Lucas was able to write an encryption code program right before the bridge was breached. They now need a new set of codes to get into the system. After one failed attempt to crack the code, the system freezes for good."

"So unless they get the codes from Lucas, the ship is useless to them."

"Yeah. Pretty ingenious, huh?"

The three officers looked at each other. Russell spoke up first. "Piccolo, if they know that Lucas is the one with the codes, they're going to try and get them from him. How long do you expect Lucas to last under interrogation? How long can any of us ask him to last?"

Piccolo shot Thomas a confused expression at his statement. They didn't think that Luke would... naw, he knew Lucas. The kid was young, granted, but he had seen the seaQuest destroyed once, and would never let anything happen to her again. Never in a million years. 

"No. Lucas would never tell."

"Tony," Thomas spoke then. "I have the greatest respect and love for Lucas. We all do; but he's a science officer. You can't expect him to last long under interrogation."

"At least this buys us some time to get our act together." Russell ended up the argument then and tried desperately to get a plan together.

"What are you talking about?" Tony interrupted. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "It does more than just give us some time. It means that we're not going anywhere. The boat is useless to them now. I know Lucas, and he may be young, and he may not be militarily trained, but he doesn't have to be; he's as loyal as they come. And if you haven't noticed by now, it's the loyal ones who come out on top."

Thomas looked doubtfully at Tony. "Sure, Piccolo. Whatever you say, but I'm not trusting my life to the loyalty and passion of a twenty-year-old kid."

Piccolo was starting to really dislike these people. Yet at the same time, he was starting to think that maybe they had a point... _No, Tony, he told himself. You can't let yourself believe that. Luke is going to be fine; he's a survivor. He attracts trouble like I attract women, and yet he always survives... right?_


	9. Chapter 9

What Doesn't Kill...  
part nine

Hudson listened to MeGath with only one ear. This was taking too long. The Secretary General had been on the vidphone for hours, trying to figure out where the seaQuest was and who was closest to her to give assistance. Pacing out of the vidphone's view, his mind wandered to his crew, those he was responsible for who were stuck in the hands of dangerous terrorists. And who was in charge? None other than his science officer, an ensign, none the less. Yes, he had faith in Lucas, but he still reserved the right to be worried out of his mind. 

"Well, that's just not good enough!" MeGath yelled into the vidscreen. He himself was frustrated and worried; no one seemed to be able to locate the huge, 1000 foot ship. "Find her! I don't care how, but do it! And when you do, report back to me. Got it?" He didn't give the poor person on the receiving end of his tirade a chance to respond before he disconnected. Turning to the Captain still pacing in his office, MeGath sighed. "I'm truly sorry, Oliver. They're trying their best, but it's simply that no one can figure out where the terrorists took her."

Hudson glared as he stopped pacing and sat down on the couch. He was silent a few moments before he spoke. "I will not have a repetition of 2022, Bill. The seaQuest is out there, somewhere, and I won't let it disappear again. We have to find her, Bill. We have to."

MeGath sighed. "I know, Oliver. We're doing our best."

"I just feel so helpless. I need to be doing something other than sitting here. Let me help down in the radar room. I spent years trying to find the seaQuest after it disappeared 10 years ago; maybe they could use my expertise." He moved to stand. "I'll go down there now-"

"Oliver, sit down." MeGath used his most authoritative voice to get Hudson's attention. He sighed then said, "There's nothing you can do down there, but there is something you could do for me."

~

Juliana paused outside the door to the brigg. Even though the heavy door was closed, she could still hear it, the sound of flesh meeting flesh, the cries of pain that he could no longer keep silent. Oh, he had tried... his face had contorted into all sorts of expressions as he kept his mouth tightly shut, opening it only after the pain had passed to suck in a heavy breath. For 45 minutes he had been able to stay silent, the only sounds coming out of his mouth being "Walenczak, Lucas. Ensign, UEO navy. Serial number E2654..." 45 minutes! She couldn't imagine lasting 15 minutes.

But after that hellish silence was up, the real torture began for Juliana. With that first scream, she felt her soul stained. This was her fault. Lucas was being hurt because of her. Lucas! Her Lucas; the Lucas who shared her first kiss; the Lucas who made her melt with desire as their eyes met across the dance floor at that party so may years ago; the Lucas who still owned a piece of her heart. Every bruise, cut, and laceration on his body was a direct result of her actions. With every scream she heard, her heart turned a little bit blacker.

But she was right, wasn't she? The UEO had to be stopped, and the seaQuest was the best way to do that. She had a higher purpose now, one that went beyond their small pitiful lives. So what if her soul died as she achieved her goal? Machiavelli had it right when he said, "the end justifies the means." She had to sacrifice Lucas for the greater good of the world. If she could just get him to see how corrupt the UEO was, then she knew that he would gladly give up himself for the greater purpose. She knew it; but did she have the right to force him into it?

Shaking her head, she ran away from that room, and away from the guilt that wouldn't leave her alone. 

~

Lucas felt numb. He couldn't believe what was happening to him. Not only had he managed to get seaQuest boarded by terrorists, but now he was in the hands of those same terrorists, scared out of his mind, hurt, bleeding, and alone; so very alone. He couldn't- no he wouldn't believe what Juliana had told him. She may have given up on herself, but never in a million years would he give up on her; not on Juliana. He winced and cried out as he felt another blow hit his stomach, and it was a few seconds before he could breathe again. It was all starting to blur together, the "interrogation." He had no clue how long he had been in here; all he knew was that there was no way that he could give in. It simply wasn't an option. 

He heard the voice again, that same awful voce that spoke up once in a while to ask the same question. It never changed, the question. He had stopped listening to it a long time ago. He was so exhausted that now he couldn't understand the words even if he wanted to. The voice simply reminded him of the old Charlie Brown cartoons, and he had to smile at the preposterous nature of the image. 

The voice came again, followed quickly by a sharp pain in his skull. The last thing he heard was something about wiping a smile off someone's face as the world swam together and faded into darkness. 


	10. Chapter 10

What Doesn't Kill...  
part ten

Hudson sat in a barren room, the long black table empty in front of him. He knew this call was one that had to be made, but he wished that MeGath hadn't asked him to do it. Bill had always been great at avoiding giving bad news to this man. The recipient of this call was not going to be happy, and it was a fair bet that it wouldn't be very long before he arrived in New Cape Quest. 

The screen in front of him came alive, the triangular UEO insignia blazing across it. A few moments later, the tanned face of Nathan Bridger, retired UEO captain, replaced it. 

"Oliver! What a surprise. How are you?"

"Hello, Nathan. I... I have some news that, well, you won't like."

"Oliver, where are you? Are you at HQ? What is it?" Worry etched itself into the ex-captain's soft features.

"Nathan, the seaQuest was being refit for the last week and a half, and this morning, while running some tests out in the water, it was boarded by hostiles. We don't know who they are or what they want, but we do know that Lieutenant Henderson was killed while mounting a defense." He stopped for a moment to let this information sink in. On the screen, Bridger sank into a chair, shocked silent. Hundreds of questions ran through his mind, but for some reason he couldn't get any of them out of his mouth. "There's more, Nathan. There was only a skeleton crew aboard when this occurred, and Henderson was the highest ranking officer. There's no one left with any major kind of combat training."

He's leaving something out, Bridger thought. What is he protecting me from? "What else, Oliver?"

Hudson sighed, hanging his head before he spoke. "When we last heard from them, the bridge was about to be breached, and... Ensign Wolenczak was in charge."

Lucas... Bridger's mind spun. Lucas was just a kid; how could he lead a team into a combat situation? Could things be any worse? As he looked back up at the screen, he could tell that yes, things were about to get worse.

"Nathan, we can't find them. They've disappeared."

~

Evans wiped away the annoying beads of sweat that threatened to run into his vision and closed his eyes tightly. He had never realized before how hot it got up here. He was so tired... he felt like he had been crawling around up here for days. The annoying part was that it looked the same. An hour of vainly trying to figure out the pattern of the crawlspaces had led him no where. He thought that he was somewhere near the c-deck, but who knew? This could've been hell and he could've been dead, doomed to crawl around aimlessly for eternity. 

Breathe, he told himself; just breathe, If you panic, you're not gonna get yourself anywhere. After a few deep breaths, he felt better. Deciding that his next move should be to figure out exactly what deck he was on (or which circle of Dante's Hell), he crawled over to a hatch that led down to the hallway, or in this case, a room. 

Peering through the grating, he instantly knew where he was, and whose body was lying alarmingly still on the floor. In seconds he had the grating off and was down by Lucas' side moments later.

"Ensign Wolenczak?" Evans gently rolled Lucas onto his back, his trained eyes searching for injuries. "Wolenczak? Wake up." He turned his attention to Lucas' pale face, slapping it gently at first, then progressively harder. "Lucas! Come on, man!"

"Oh..." Ever so softly, the groan escaped Lucas' lips. Evans doubted he had even heard it until it came again, this time louder. Lucas' head rolled to one side.

"Lucas?" His eyes opened groggily, wincing as the pain washed back over him.

"Wes?" Came the weak reply.

Relief washed over him. "Yeah, Lucas. It's me."

"Why... why are there three of you?" 

He laughed then, and it felt really good. Some of the tension from the last couple of hours lifted off his shoulders as his lips curled into a smile. Then the moment was gone, and his spirit again turned somber.

"Listen, Lucas, can you tell me what happened?" 

Lucas told Evans everything then, from Lonnie's trial run of the HR Probe to her sacrifice in the docking bay. "We lost the bridge. Everyone else was able to escape, but I was last out. I was able to encrypt the system, though, and for the past hour they've been trying to... 'convince' me to tell them the code. I won't." Lucas looked Evans in the eyes, and the intense fire behind them surprised Evans. "I would rather die than let them get seaQuest."

"Shh, Lucas. Don't get yourself worked up."

"No, Wes, you have to listen to me. If they get the code, they will start a war. Do you understand me? A war, Wes! I'm not going to let that happen."

"Lucas, that's not going to happen. Just calm down and let me check you out. Do you remember where they hit you?"

Lucas grabbed Evan's probing hands before he could touch his body. "Don't worry about me, Wes, listen. They're not going to get the code from me. Which means when the UEO gets here, they're gonna need to get seaQuest started. If I... don't make it-"

"Lucas, don't talk like that. Of course you're gonna make it-"

"Wes! For the last time, listen to me! I need to give you the code in case something happens to me."

"Look, Lucas, are you sure that I'm the right one for this? I mean, I just work in med-bey, and-"

"Evans, do you see anyone else around that I could tell it to? You have to do this. It has to be done."

Sighing, Evans hung his head in resignment. "Okay. What is it?"

~

Evans felt heavy as he crawled away from the brigg. He had only left after insisting that he do as much as he could for Lucas' injuries. Lucas had sustained a dislocated shoulder, a few broken ribs, and possibly internal bleeding, so he was in no condition to go crawling around in the dusty crawlways. Lucas had insisted that Evans meet up with Picallo and the other free crewmembers, and Evans had no other option. He didn't want to leave the ensign in the hands of terrorists, but there just weren't any other options available, no matter how much of a traitor he felt like. 

The information Lucas had entrusted him with was what Lucas had bled for, and he was damned sure that he was not going lessen that sacrifice by giving it up. No one was even going to know that he had the code, not even the other free crewmembers. As long as their enemy thought that Lucas was the only one who knew the code, then they would keep him alive. That was the one thought that kept Evans crawling forward through the darkness; he would make sure that Lucas came out of this alive. 


	11. Chapter 11

What Doesn't Kill...  
part eleven

Picallo stared into the moonpool. The others were discussing tactics and strategies in the far corner, but they had made it very clear that nothing he had to say would be listened to, so he had gone off to think. He still couldn't believe that Lonnie was dead. Just this morning they had eaten breakfast together, and now she was... He couldn't bear it. He loved her; he was sure of it. He loved everything she did. Their study sessions helped more than just his mind; they kept him sane when everything else around him was careening out of his control. Just being near her made him happy to be alive. And now... He felt guilty for not following up after their kiss in the brigg that day. He was nervous; he hadn't been sure how she was going to react, so he had avoided being alone with her. And now she was gone. 

Wiping away the stray tear that had found it's way onto his cheek, he steered his thoughts away from Lonnie for sake of his sanity. Looking around the dock, he wondered not for the first time why Lucas had wanted them to go here. Was it just the fact that it was a place the terrorists weren't likely to go? He didn't think so; there were other places on the ship that made more tactical sense, so why here? Was it something about the subs that were being repaired? They weren't operational, so it wasn't like they could drive one of them out of here. There was no way they could leave seaQuest anyway, not in the hands of these people. What then? Think, Tony, he thought. You can figure this out. Think like Lucas. What was the thing he was the most worried about? Contacting the UEO, right? Suddenly he sat up. That was it! The subs ran on a system that was separate from seaQuest's; if the subs were powered, then they would be able to contact the UEO!

Running over to the others, he didn't care about the annoyed looks he received because of his interruption. "Guys, I figured it out!"

"What, Tony? The answer to world hunger?" Russell said sarcastically. Tony ignored the jab.

"No, the reason why Lucas wanted us to come here. The mini-subs are on their own system. It can be attached to seaQuest's main, but not necessarily." He waited a moment to see if they would get where he was going. When all they gave him were blank looks, he went on. "We can use one of them to contact the surface!"

After a moment's shocked silence, Thomas smiled and laughed. "Of course! You're absolutely right, Tony!" The others followed suit, for the first time looking at Piccolo with a hint of respect. Thomas motioned to the other two and the group excitedly moved to the closest sub. Once inside, Thomas sat in the pilot seat and brought up the sub's communication system. 

"Okay, I'm bringing up the protocalls, but I'm not sure if this is going to work. If they boys on the bridge are monitoring the ship at all, they're gonna know that we're transmitting. If we stay online for too long, they can track the signal back to us, no matter how many sattellites I bounce our transmission off of. If Lucas were here, I'm sure he would be able to get us some more connection time, but... I'm no genious."

Lieutenant Foster spoke up from behind Thomas' chair. "So how long will we have?"

"Ten minutes at the most, or else our buddies are gonna find us."

Suddenly the group went quiet and the air turned tense. The hatch to the bay outside had opened. Russell put his finger to his lips, motioning for everyone to stay quiet as he picked up the gun he had set on the sub's consul. The group exchanged charged looks as he stealthly left the mini-sub. Minutes passed, then suddenly a loud "splash!" broke the silence and moments later Russell returned with a very wet Evans in tow.

"Lookie what I found," Russell commented as he flopped back into the chair he had vacated moments earlier. 

"Evans!" Tony exclaimed. "We thought-"

"I know what you thought, and you were almost right." He went on to tell the group how he had evaded capture and how he had found Lucas. 

"Is Lucas okay?" Tony asked, afraid of what the answer might be.

"I'm not gonna lie, Tony. He was beat up pretty badly. I did as much as I could for him."

Just then Thomas spoke from the consul. "Okay, guys, I've got a secure line. I'm plugging in to UEO HQ now, and I'm starting the timer at twenty minutes and counting. Picallo, watch and keep us updated on how much time we have left." The vid screen lit up then, displaying the triumphant UEO logo. Moments later Admiral Noyce's face filled the screen.

"What- who are you and how did you get this number?" 

"Sir, we're the surviving crew of the seaQuest DSV, Ensign Thomas speaking." He ignored the Admiral's last question. Lucas wasn't the only person on the ship with numbers he wasn't supposed to have access to...

"The seaQuest?" Noyce motioned to someone out of the view of the vid screen. "Where are you? Do you have control of the boat?"

"Sir, the ship is still under the terrorist's control. Currently we are at full stop, at coordinates 39-492."

Hudson came into view then, relief apparent on his face. "Are you missing anyone?"

After a few seconds of silence, Russell spoke up from the back of the sub. "Lucas got captured, but other than that we're all accounted for."

Hudson blanched. "Ensign Wolenczak has been taken?"

"5:00," Piccolo muttered.

Thomas picked up the conversation. "The boat isn't going anywhere, Captain, and we have a plan to rescue Lucas. If we can get some assistance, we can take this boat back."

Noyce nodded, turning to his computer. "We'll send the closest sub we have."

"Have they retrieved the code yet?" 

"No," Evans spoke up, his voice low and even. "And they won't."

"Do you have any idea who these people are?"

"Well, sir," Evans went on, "from what we can gather they seem to be Macs." Hudson sighed. He was afraid of that. "Lucas seemed to know the leader, some woman named Juliana. He didn't give a rank, sir." Piccolo stared at Evans for a moment. That name sounded familiar...

"Did they give a reason for taking control of seaQuest?"

"Yes, sir. Lucas said that they were planning on using seaQuest to torpedo UEO HQ in New Cape Quest. He said that they were going to start a war, sir." Hudson couldn't believe what he was hearing. Could Bourne be that desperate that he would try and attack the headquarters of the UEO? It was insane. Yep; sounded like Bourne allright.

Noyce turned away from his computer and once again addressed the assembled crew. "The Clinton's ETA is two hours, gentlemen. You're on your own until then."

"Yes sir," Thomas looked over at Piccolo who mouthed "1:23." He turned back to the vid screen.

"Just make sure that you're ready when she gets there," Noyce continued. "We can't risk communication before she attacks. You'd better watch the clock."

"Men," Hudson started but faltered, not sure what he wanted to say. No, he knew what he wanted to say, but he was having trouble forming his emotions into words. It had never been something he was good at. He ended up simply saying, "Good luck." 

"Thomas, thirty seconds!" Piccolo whispered.

"Thank you, sir," Thomas looked at his Captain and spoke. "We won't let the UEO down. SeaQuest out." The vid screen went dark. Thomas cut the connection and looked at the timer. It read "0:03."

"Ever thought about not leaving it to the last possible second, Thomas?" 

"Naw. That would take all the fun out of it."

~

Lucas liked where he was. It was worm here, floating free in the dark. There was nothing scary about the darkness, just a fuzzy familiarity, like he'd been here before but couldn't pinpoint a date or time. But the thing he liked best about this place was that there was no pain here. Something whispered from the back of his brain about a remembered agony that would return should he ever go back to that other place, and he desperately wanted to stay away from there. There were demons waiting for him there.

Yet something was pulling him away from this peaceful place, something drawing him unwillingly out of the fog. He heard voices, faint but getting clearer, saying his name. _No! Something screamed. Don't leave! There's pain there. You can stay here forever, floating free without suffering. Wouldn't you like that?_

Yes, he cried. _Oh God, yes. I don't want to leave..._

Then say it.

His conscious mind jerked at the comment even as his lips moved to obey. Something was wrong. But how could anything be wrong in this place? _Say what?_

The code. That's all you have to do. Tell us the code and you can stay here forever.

What?

The code, Lucas. Just say it. No one out there will hear it, and then you can stay here, with us. You want that, don't you? Come on, just once. That's all it'll take.

Lucas' lips moved to form the numbers, but before he could make any sound, his mind rebelled against the soothing voice. His eyes narrowed. _Who are you? What is this place? Something isn't right here..._

Say it!

No!

Suddenly the fog surrounding him grew heavier, and the darkness seemed to press in on all sides. Faces formed in and out of the fog, accusing him and swearing at him. Monsters from his childhood nightmares and figures from his past appeared everywhere. No! he cried, cowering and crawling into a tight ball. No, this isn't real, this can't be real...

Then the pain poured through his veins, a pain like no other he had experienced before. 

In the real world, an agonizing scream ripped through the air as the men in black jumpsuits injected another vial on clear liquid into Lucas' sprawled body.


	12. Chapter 12

What Doesn't Kill...  
part twelve

Tony checked the power on his gun. He still couldn't believe that the others had actually thought that this plan was going to work. The terrorists had already beaten them once, and now they thought that they could just take the bridge back by brute force? True, they had weapons now, but so did the enemy.

Tony's thoughts kept turning back to Lucas. He tried not to think about it, but the questions just kept popping into his brain. Was he being tortured right now? Was he hurt? No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get away from the guilt that was plaguing him. He had left Lucas in the hands of terrorists! Realistically, he knew that it hadn't been his fault, that if he had stayed, then the terrorists would have simply had two hostages, but he couldn't help himself. He should have protected Lucas. 

"Tony?" Thomas called softly. "Are you ready?"

He shook himself back into reality. "Huh? Oh, yeah." 

Raising their weapons, the group took off out the hatch, leaving the relative security of the repair bey. 

~

Nathan Bridger's thoughts were erratic as he ran about his island home, stuffing this and that into his standard-issue duffel bag. He had booked himself on the first plane to Honolulu he could find; he had already dropped Michael off at the old couple's place the next island over. He wanted to be as close to the action as he could get. Lucas was in trouble. 

That one phrase kept circling around in his mind. Lucas was in trouble. Bridger had failed. He had sworn long ago to protect Lucas from any and all danger, and he had failed. 

He was running though the living room when his gaze caught the small framed picture sitting on the fireplace mantle. Suddenly all of his adrenaline left him, and he fell back into the couch. His eyes never left the picture. It was an old, worn photo of Lucas and Nathan, taken at a candid moment when the two were laughing and Bridger had his arm wrapped around the boy's shoulders. Lucas had been more than just a crewmember to Bridger; he had been Nathan's saving grace at a time when he had given everything up. Lucas was one of the reasons Bridger had decided to return to the Navy, and over their tours together, he had grown to think of Lucas as his surrogate son. He could only pray that Lucas felt the same way. Now he might never know...

To think that he would never see Lucas again made Bridger's heart skip a beat. He couldn't lose another son, not this way. Never knowing what had become of Robert tore Nathan up to this day, and he knew that if the same happened to Lucas, he wouldn't be able to survive.

Slowly, he pulled himself up off the couch and made his way over to the fireplace. Taking the picture, he rubbed his fingers over Lucas' smiling face. _I will find you, kiddo,_ he silently vowed. _When this thing is over, I will be the first face you see. I won't let you down again, I promise._ His resolve strengthened, Nathan stuck the frame in his bag and walked out the door.

~

Lucas tried to stay calm, but the closer they dragged him to the wardroom the faster his breathing became. He knew that if the two men flanking him had not been holding on to him, he would've collapsed a long time ago. He could barely drag his feet as he was pulled down the familiar hallways. He didn't know what was waiting for him, but he refused to give in to his fear. He was terrified, but kept repeating his vow in his head: _Talking is not an option. Talking is not an option... talking is not an option..._

He was concentrating so hard on moving his feet and repeating his mantra that his mind barely registered the fact that they had stopped. The man on his right let go of him long enough to knock on the hatch and open it after a voice inside said, "Enter."

Juliana stood as Lucas was brought into the room. Motioning for him to sit in the chair opposite her, she once again took her seat across the table. The terrorists took up positions on either side of the door, falling into an alert parade rest.

She looked Lucas up and down as he struggled to stay sitting up. Her mind raged at the bruises that covered his face and at his obvious pain when he moved. She longed to comfort him, but she reminded herself that they were on opposite sides now, and there was something at stake that was larger than the two of them.

"Lucas, I... we need to talk." She tried to keep her voice steady, unwavering, but she wasn't so sure that it was coming across that way. He simply raised his eyebrows and kept silent. "I don't want to hurt you." From across the table, she heard him snort at her comment. "I don't. I don't like violence any more than you do. But this is bigger that you and I. If you could only understand, I know you would tell us everything. The UEO is no longer what we wanted it to be so long ago, Lucas. It's become corrupt and too powerful for its own good. It's time for a change."

"Who are you to decide that?" Lucas' eyes blazed with hatred. "Didn't you learn anything from Node 3? Mycroft tried to take justice in his own hands. His cause was just, Jules, but his methods were wrong. We cannot change the world by breaking the law and killing people. What makes you think that you have the right to decide what's just and what's not? The UEO may not be perfect, but they at least obey the law. There are ways to change things without bloodshed, Jules."

"Mycroft was an idealist, Lucas. I'm not. I've seen what the UEO is capable of, the laws that they break to achieve their goals. How can you serve a group so corrupt and not try and do something about it? Section 7 is out of control, yet the UEO allows them free reign. What does that say about them?"

"I'm not disagreeing with you about section 7. They have too much power, and too much freedom. But that doesn't mean that the entire UEO is corrupt. I'm sorry about Nick, Jules. He was my friend, and I miss him too. But I will not let you start a war over his death. He wouldn't have wanted that." The room grew silent, the only sound coming from Lucas as he struggled to get his breath back. After a few moments, Juliana motioned to the guards.

"Take him back. Your faith has blinded you, Lucas. I give up." The guards pulled Lucas up from the chair, and before they walked out of the room, Juliana added softly, "I'm sorry, Lucas." Then the hatch closed and no one remained behind to see her lay her head on the table and cry.


	13. Chapter 13

What Doesn't Kill...  
part thirteen

Piccolo could feel his heart pounding as he poked his head around the corner. Gun fully charged and raised to point at the ceiling, he checked the hallway for bad terrorrist guys and, seeing that it was clear, he turned back to the group behind him and motioned for them to move forward. Silently, the group moved forward around the corner, all fully armed and tensed for an attack. They weren't sure just how many terrorists there were, and they assumed that at least some would be searching for them. 

Evan's mind was racing a mile-a-minute. He had barely ever held a gun before, let alone gone looking for reasons to shoot one. There was a reason he worked in Med bay. For three tours in the Navy, Evans had gotten a free ride all the way through med-school. He had worked hard, and when he had earned himself a place aboard the UEO's flagship, he never thought he would end up in his current situation. He couldn't remember ever being more frightened, but he kept thinking about Lucas, and his own vow to make sure that the Ensign made it out of this alive. Taking a deep breath, he moved forward. 

The group moved down the hallway. They didn't run into a single person, and the closer they got to the bridge, the more anxious they got. They ran silently, though it seemed unnecessary. They all wondered at their good luck. At this rate, they would reach the bridge too early and wouldn't be able to coordinate their attack with the arrival of the sub Noyce was sending. 

Suddenly, Thomas heard movement from around the corner. Motioning for the group to stop, he checked the power setting on his gun before peeking around the bulkhead.

What he saw made his heart jump. Lucas, bruised and weak, was being led down the hallway by two bulky guards. He turned back around and motioned for the group to be ready to fire. 

The next few moments passed in a blur. Laser fire flew through the air at such a fast rate that it was hard to distinguish which were coming from which side. Piccolo ducked as a shot nicked a hole in the wall right next to his head. Wide eyed, he took a deep breath and resume firing. 

The two guards held their own for a while, but it didn't take long for the one on Lucas' right to fall, a laser shot hitting him in the chest. Desperate, the other grabbed Lucas in a chokehold and pressed his gun to the blonde's temple.

"Hold your fire!" Thomas yelled, though the group had already ceased their assault. "Let him go."

"No. Not until all of you lower your weapons." The group looked around at each other, not knowing what to do. At Thomas' nod, they lowered their guns. The descending whines of the laser pistols de-charging pierced the sudden silence. Thomas went to disable his weapon, but only pretended to hit the switch. He was the only one who remained with his gun charged, lowered at his side. 

"There. Now let him go."

"No. All of you are going to come with me to the bridge." When no one moved, he pressed his gun harder against his hostage's head. Lucas just closed his eyes and tried to breathe, his mind running a mile-a-minute. "I said move! Now!"

Lucas tried to get his normally rational mind to complete a thought, but it was running in a hundred different directions and he couldn't seem to get it to calm down. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't let himself be used against his friends like this, but what options did he have? He had a friggin' gun pointed to his head, for heaven's sake! Suddenly, his muddy mind remembered something that Chief Crocker had showed him once, when, after seaQuest had been boarded by terrorists, he had asked the security chief to show him some basic self-defense moves. Without thinking, he formed a single fist with both hands and jammed his right elbow into his captor's stomach. 

Surprised that his captive, who he had thought to be barely conscious, had attacked him, he guard doubled over and let his grip on Lucas go. Turning, Lucas grabbed the gun and tried to point it away from his head. As the two struggled for control, they shuffled around, so that the guard's back was facing the seaQuest crew. 

Taking advantage on the opportunity, Thomas raised his gun and shot the guard in the back.

Letting go of the dead weight, Lucas fell back against the wall and, energy spent, slid down to the floor, his eyes locked on the surprised expression the dead guard was still wearing.

Tony rushed over to his friend, crouching down and putting a hand on his shoulder. "Lucas, you okay man? You had us worried there for a while." 

Lucas looked up then, his eyes distant and filled with pain. "T-Tony?"

"Yeah, Luke. It's me." He smiled then, before grimacing. 

"Don't... don't call me... Luke..." Tony returned the smile, heart searing at their familiar joke, and helped his friend to stand. He tried to keep his mind off of the obvious pain Lucas was in, and what most certainly caused it. He failed, reaching out to catch Lucas as he swayed unsteadily on his feet. Guilt washed over him as he looked, really looked, at his friend for the first time since they had been separated. 

"God, Lucas... I'm so sorry. It's my fault; I shouldn't have left you on the bridge. Can you forgive me?"

Lucas closed his eyes and willed the pain to pass. "Tony, it wasn't... it wasn't your fault. You... you had to... to leave. I'm glad..." Lucas mustered as much strength as his ailing body would let him. He had to get this right. "I'm glad it wasn't you."

There were certain things that made Tony Piccolo who he was. His love for women, drinking, and fun had gotten him in more tight situations that he cared to remember, but he had always been able to talk his way out of most of them. If Tony was one thing, he was a giant walking mouth. But now, for the first time in his life, Tony Piccolo was speechless. 

~

Juliana strode onto the bridge, her confident aura now firmly back in place. Lucas was not going to join them- which meant they were enemies. She believed her cause to be just, but somewhere inside her she mourned for the loss of his friendship, and the children they had been together. She also grieved for what she knew she would ultimately have to do to Lucas, but for now, she focused on the higher cause that had called her to action. If Lucas' faith in the UEO had blinded him to what was really going on, then they were on opposite sides.

She could handle that. She could. She would have to.


	14. Chapter 14

What Doesn't Kill... 

What Doesn't Kill...  
part fourteen

The captain of the UEO Carlton switched off the vidlink as she leaned back in her chair. There were a thousand things clamoring for her attention, but right now it was all she could do just to remain where she was. She had a new mission to begin, one that she knew she could not let fail. This mission would bring her face to face with everything she had tried to ignore for the past ten years. The seaQuest was in trouble, and she had been ordered to lead in the cavalry. 

She should be feeling like a hero. She should be thankful that it had been her sub that was closest to the seaQuest when she needed help. She should be feeling a lot of things, but right now all that she was feeling was guilt. 

After years of grieving for her lost friends aboard the seaQuest, she had banished them to the back of her mind. She had been forced to, for the sake of her sanity. 

Then, a few months ago, they had returned, and she was no longer able to keep her memories and feelings at bay. She had heard the reports; not everyone had made it back from wherever they had been for the last ten years. She hadn't wanted to know whom fate had decided to let live. Or die. So she had tried her best to ignore them, and, for the most part, had successfully blocked out their renewed presence from her perception. Only a small twinkling of guilt remained, surfacing briefly in the few and far between moments of solitude she was allowed in her position.

Her friends had disappeared off the face of the planet, re-appeared ten years later, and she hadn't even bothered to contact them. For goodness sake, Jonathan had been on that boat! Her guilt only increased whenever she heard that name. Their relationship had never evolved past flirting, but she had always wondered about what might have happened if she had stayed on the seaQuest for a second tour, if she hadn't let her ambition be her entire focus.

Katie Hitchcock shook her head and once again tried her hardest not to think about the people she once knew on a ship she once served on called the seaQuest DSV. 

~

The fight only lasted a few minutes.

In the beginning, the seaQuest crew had the element of surprise to their advantage. Barging in with laser beams flying, the terrorists were slow in reciprocating the attack, and a few went down before they could even react.

But it didn't take long for them to regain their composure and fire, and when they did, it was all over. Five against seven were already bad enough odds, and the seaQuest crew was tired and hungry, and Lucas was barely able to stand, let alone fight.

In the end, the terrorists were down a few soldiers, but had gained five hostages.

~

"Lucas?" Tony called out tentatively. No one had spoken since the group's miserable attempt to take control of the boat had been so completely thwarted. After being subdued, they had been bound and thrust onto the floor in the back of the bridge, for the moment at least, ignored by their captors. "Lucas?" He whispered again, glancing to see if he was drawing the group undue attention. He felt confident in risking it, though. He had been watching Lucas, who was lying with his eyes closed a few feet from him, for the past five-teen minutes, and was getting increasingly worried. The young man was pale, ugly bruises standing out prominently on his face. His breathing was shallow and pained, and his brow was creased in pain. Whether he was unconscious or simply sleeping Piccolo didn't know, but he intended to find out.

"Lucas!" he hissed, knowing that a few of the terrorists had sent impatient glances in his direction. It was worth it though, as Tony was rewarded with a groan from the frighteningly still body. "That's it, Luke, come on back." This time a head moved, and sleepy eyes opened. 

"Tony?"

"Yeah, Luke. You okay?"

"IÉ I don't... God, it hurts!"

Tony closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay, Luke," he replied, trying to keep the conversation light, "where does it hurt?"

Lucas' eyes closed briefly as he grimaced and tried his hardest to stay strong in front of his friend. "Well... um... everywhere, Tony." He groaned softly as he struggled to find a way to lay on the ground with his arms tied behind him in a way that caused the least amount of pain. "I think my... my shoulder feels funny, like it's not quite sitting right, and it hurts... ugh... to breathe..." He coughed, turning his head to the side, and if Tony hadn't been worried before, he certainly was now. 

Blood. Lucas had coughed up blood.

Tony was no medic, but he had gone through enough emergency training to know what coughing up blood meant.

Lucas was in serious trouble. 

He had to get some help. Surely these people holding them wouldn't want the only person with the codes to the system, which they had obviously failed to circumvent, to die, right?

"Hey!" Tony yelled to the clump of people in which Juliana was standing. "Hey! I need help over here!"

"Tony!" Lucas hissed, thinking his friend had finally lost it. "What... do you th-think... you're d-doing?"

"Shh, Lucas. It's going to be okay." He turned again to the group now looking at him in annoyance. "Hey! Over here!" One eyebrow raised Juliana rose from the consul she had been looking at and walked over to kneel in front of Tony.

"What exactly do you want?"

Gulping at the glare in her eyes, Tony took a breath and continued. "Lucas is in serious condition. He needs medical attention."

Juliana's eyes lost a bit of their edge, but remained, for the most part, hard. "And you think you're in a condition to demand anything from me?"

"You want the codes from him, right? Well, you can't very well get them from him if he's dead. I know you're a hacker too, but not nearly as good as Lucas. You'll never be able to get into that system, and it's just a matter of time before the UEO finds us." He paused, knowing he was on the verge of begging but not caring at all. All that mattered was getting Lucas some help. "Please. He's bleeding internally. He needs a doctor."

Juliana looked at Lucas' body, shame making her cheeks burn. Lowering her head, she began "TonyÑ"

"Sir!" Marks called from where he and Juliana had previously been standing, a suspicious look on his face. "A moment?"

Sighing, Juliana stood and walked back to converse with the large man. A few moments later, she returned, only to have her resolved and detachment clearly shown on her face. "If Ensign Wolenczak wants to see a doctor, he needs only to tell us the codes." With that, she turned her back and walked away.

~

It seemed like forever that things remained this way, the seaQueast crew seemingly ignored by their captors, but in reality it was only about twenty minutes before they made their final move. Suddenly, Lucas was pulled from his half-consciousness and made to stand as steadily as he could on his feet. Tony and Evans raised protests at his harsh treatment, but their objections were met with deaf ears. Lucas winced as he was dragged to stand in the middle of the bridge, in front of the man who he would remember in his nightmares for years, if only in the form of a fist and a demanding voice. 

"Okay, Wolenczak," Marks began. "I'm giving you one last chance. If you answer my question, then you can see a doctor, and all of the pain will end. So, tell me, Lucas. What are the codes to the seaQuest mainframe?"

Lucas didn't even bother to speak, knowing that it would do no good. He would not tell this man anything. Whatever was going to happen now, he had made his peace. 

"I thought as much. You know, kid, you're starting to piss me off." Moving suddenly, he pulled out a gun and held it inches from Lucas' forehead. "My patience is running out, Lucas! Now, are you ready to die? For a few measly numbers?"

Lucas tried not to let anything betray his fear, but he couldn't help the slight tremble in his breath as his eyes focused involuntarily on the steel barrel. He had thought that he had been ready for this. God knew that he didn't have much to live for these days, and he thought that he had accepted that. But now, face to face with the instrument that would, with a slight tensing of a man's finger, end his life utterly and completely, he suddenly had a huge desire to live. He wanted to tell Tony how much their re-newed friendship meant to him. He wanted to tell Hudson how much he admired him. He no longer cared what Bridger had or hadn't done; he would've given anything at that moment just to hear the man call him kiddo again.

He didn't want to die. But he would not give up the codes. Talking is not an option... talking is not an option...

"Fine, kid. Have it your way. Get ready to say goodbye to your buddies over there." He felt the slight movement of the man's gun as his finger tightened on the trigger and his eyes closed in anticipation...

The sudden rocking of the ship threw Lucas and the man holding the gun in opposite directions, each falling to the floor, the gun flinging harmlessly to the side. Groaning, Lucas barely had time to let the world stop spinning before the ship shook again. 

"Someone's firing on us!" One of the terrorists yelled, panic making his voice edgy. 

Tony closed his eyes and let out the breath that he didn't even know he had been holding. The cavalry was here! 

Juliana ran over to where Lucas was still laying on the floor. Furious, she grabbed him and dragged him to his knees.

"Who's firing on us? The UEO?" She shook him roughly, making his vision blur. "How did you contact them?! Huh? Tell them to stop!" Panicking, she gripped his shoulders harder to keep them both from falling over as the boat was hit again. Sparks flew from around the bridge. "Damn it, Lucas! Tell me the codes! They're gonna kill us all!" 

Voice shaking, Lucas managed to lift his head and utter a single word before collapsing into Juliana's arms. 

"Good." 

Juliana, enraged, threw Lucas onto the floor, where he lay unmoving.

Tony frantically worked at his bonds, ignoring the sting as the ropes cut into his skin. If only he could get lose... his captors were so panicked that it wouldn't take much to overpower them. Then he could get to Lucas and take back the boat.

Sparks flew as the boat was hit again, and this time foreboding croaks and groans accompanied it. The boat wouldn't last much longer at this rate. Tony struggled to stay upright as he kept working, noticing that his crewmates were doing the same.

Juliana ran frantically from consul to consul, pushing her own men out of the way, trying anything and everything she could think of to get communications going. Nothing was working. She screamed in frustration and smashed her fist against the consul. 

Tony growled in frustration as he realized that his efforts to weaken the ropes were futile. All he was doing was making the knots tighter, and making the ropes dig farther into his skin. He took a calming breath and tried to get his racing pulse under control. Suddenly he felt hands encircle his wrists and breath and his ear.

"Hold still, Tony." A voice whispered in his ear. As soon as his hands were free, Tony turned around and came face to face with a smiling Thomas. He held up a knife. "I was a Boy Scout-- I'm always prepared. " Tony smiled in relief before rushing off to Lucas' side, trusting that Thomas would take care of the rest of his crewmates. 

Meanwhile the terrorists were quickly abandoning their cause. Most wanted to get rid of the UEO, but not badly enough to die doing it. Juliana screamed threats as her men slowly retreated to the back of the bridge and finally ran through the clam doors, yelling that she was welcome to stay, but they didn't want to become martyrs. Soon all the only people left were Juliana and Marks, who looked at each other warily.

Tony ran to Lucas, frightened by how still his friend was laying. He turned Lucas onto his back and cupped his head in one of his hands. 

"Luke?" He lightly tapped the young man's cheek, willing his eyes to open. They didn't. "Lucas, man, come back!" A second tap, this one harder, and still no response came. Fear started to creep up, butterflies flapping their hardest in his stomach. Tony held Lucas close, shielding his face, as another blast came, this time bringing some metal sheets and piping raining down on their heads. Tony looked up then, noticing for the first time how deserted the bridge had become. From behind him, Thomas, Russell and Foster rushed Juliana and Marks, who were still seething from their desertion, and soon they were on the floor, disarmed and livid.

Evans rested a hand on Tony's shoulder, squatting down to get a better look at Lucas. Sensing that the boy was in serious condition and would most likely not wake up soon, he looked around the bridge, seemingly trying to come to a decision.

Russell and Foster each sat on a prisoner, each enjoying making their captives as uncomfortable as possible. These people had dared to come onto their ship and hurt their friends, and now they were going to pay. They looked up as Evans walked over to them and pulled up a chair to a consul. He began to type, and within minutes, every computer screen in the bridge flickered and the words "Authorization Complete" flashed. Soon every consul was back in working order, scans and diagnostics picking up from where they were left off as if none of the recent events had even occurred.

The bridge fell silent. Everyone stared at the medical officer, shock written on their faces. Thomas was the first to act as another torpedo caused the boat to tilt alarmingly. Rushing to the communications station, he quickly sent a call to the attacking ship.

"UEO vessel, cease fire! The situation is under control! I repeat, cease your fire!"

A few tense seconds later, a welcomed voice came over the speakers. "UEO seaQuest, this is the UEO Carlton. Message received. Ready your ship for a boarding party. Does anyone need medical attention?"

Thomas looked over at the still unconscious Lucas lying prone on the floor. As soon as Thomas had sent the call, Evans had rushed back to the young ensign's side. He looked up at Thomas, the concerned expression on his face telling Thomas all that he needed to know.

"Yes, Carlton. We need medical attention and fast."


	15. Chapter 15

What Doesn't Kill...  
part fourteen

Tony was the first to speak. "You... you knew the codes?" Carefully controlled anger marked his words, giving them a hard edge. As soon as Thomas had ended the call with the Carlton, all of the faces on the bridge had turned towards Evans. "You freaking knew the codes and didn't say anything? You sat there while Lucas had a gun to his head and did nothing?!?"

"Tony--"

"You bastard!" This time the anger was not so carefully controlled. "You cold bastard! How could you?"

"Tony--"

"Just answer me this one thing. Would you have let him die? If we hadn't been fired on, would you have let that son of a bitch kill Lucas?"

"Look, Tony, I don't have the time to argue this with you right now. Help is on its way, and we need to get Lucas down to the launch bey. Are you going to help me or not?"

Tony kneeled down beside Lucas' body and looked Evans strait in the eye. "This isn't over, Evans. Not by a long shot."

~

Lucas woke slowly, floating for a while between reality and unconsciousness. It was warm there, and for the first time in a while there was no pain. Slowly, the mist surrounding his started to lighten to a slate gray, and in the distance he could hear the soft murmer of voices. He wanted to stay here, in this place between dreaming and waking, but he knew that his place was not meant for him.

Slowly, the mist thinned, and the voices grew louder. He thought he recognized one of them; the baritone timbre triggered something in the back of his mind of a time and place that he hadn't thought about in a long time.

He took a few deep breaths, noting that there was no pain in his chest when he did so, and tried to work through the fuzz that was his brain. A higher pitched, tenor voice spoke then in an encouraging tone that, despite his inability to process the words, comforted him and gave him the courage to open his eyes.

The light wasn't as bright as he had expected. After the initial glare, a few blinks made his eyes focus, and in a sudden rush, his brain began to comprehend the words that were being spoken to him.

"That's it, kiddo. Come back to us."

Lucas swallowed dryly before turning his head to come face to face with Nathan Bridger.

"Cap... captain..." 

"Shh, kiddo. Don't try to speak. Do you want some water?"

He nodded sleepily, not having the energy to try verbal communication again. Bridger smiled warmly before brushing an unruly lock of hair out of Lucas' eyes and getting up. 

Lucas started to close his eyes before a quiet shuffle from the other side of his bed revealed another presence in the room. His mouth fell open in shock as he turned his eyes and they focused on the face before him.

"D-dad?"

~

Lawrence Wolenczak quietly closed the door to his son's hospital room and turned to face Bridger's unreadable expression.

"He was pretty shocked."

"An understandable reaction."

Lawrence sighed and twisted his jacket in his hands as he walked down the hallway. "I know that you don't like me much, Nathan. You never have. And I know that I haven't done much to improve that impression these past few months."

"I don't think that it's my impression of you that you need to be worrying about," Nathan commented as the pair sat in the warn hospital chairs.

They were silent for a while, until Lawrence spoke. "The doctor said that he'll be okay, right?"

"Yes," Nathan replied, the relief evident in his voice. "Although it was touch-and-go there for a while." He paused for a moment, considering his words before deciding to go on. "You know, Lawrence, Lucas has spent the past several months in a kind-of... limbo. He hasn't had contact with anyone he knew before we... disappeared. It's been hard for all of us to take that step. Just imagine waking up in a world that you hardly recognize; one that is the same world that you went to sleep in, but the people are all different. Everyone he knew has lived ten years of their lives that he hasn't. Even more than that; you and everyone else who knew him mourned him. You all said goodbye and moved on with your lives. Was he supposed to just waltz back home and be completely accepted? Especially considering the circumstances? He didn't try to contact you, and for all he knew you didn't try to contact him. How do you think that made him feel?" Not that it wasn't out of character for you, Nathan added silently.

"I know that it was hard for him, Nathan, but it was the only way. If he knew what I've become... no; it's better this way. I think maybe I'll just leave before he wakes up long enough to remember that I was here."

Bridger shook his head as Lawrence moved to stand up. "I don't think that's a good idea, Lawrence."

"No, Nathan, it's the best thing I could do for him right now. I don't know why I came here in the first place. It's just... all of this has been very hard for me. After I was told that the seaQuest crew had been found, I wanted to contact him. More than that; I wanted to hug him, and play baseball with him, and do all of those fatherly things that I missed out on when I had the chance. But I lost the courage, and when time passed and he never contacted me I knew that he didn't want to reach me. So I got in touch with my contacts and called regularly to make sure he was okay. That's enough for me, and I know that it's all that he wants."

"How do you know that for sure if you haven't talked to him?"

"I just know, okay? It's not like I was father of the year before he disappeared; it won't do any harm if I just stay away." He stood up, shaking the wrinkles out of his jacket.

Nathan Bridger prided himself on the fact that he could keep cool under pressure; in fact, the UEO had counted on it several times in his career when he had negotiated talks with other confederations. There were, however, certain things that could get him so worked up that all of his famed self-control flew out the window; that short list was topped by a certain father of a certain blond-headed boy, who was currently sleeping in a hospital room a few feet down the hallway.

That control was no where to be found at the moment.

"What the hell is your problem, Wolenczak?" 

Lawrence stilled his movements, stunned that retired UEO captain Nathan Bridger, who moments ago had been sitting calmly in a hospital chair, was now standing nose-to-nose with him, his face a mask of anger. "Umn, Nathan?"

"For a genius, you are positively one of the dumbest men I have ever met! And believe me, I have met my share of dumb! You are not seriously going to walk out that door?"

"What do you want me to do?"

"Take your head out of your ass, for starters! You claim you want what's best for your son, yet here you are, leaving as soon as it gets hard! But then again, that's your MO, isn't it, Wolenczak? Promise your son a few moments of your time next week, next month, next decade, but as soon as that time comes there's never any time in your busy schedule for your son!" Nathan had been creeping forward during his tirade, and had now had the object of his anger backed up against the wall. "Well, it's time to show up or shut up, Dr.." He accentuated his words by shoving Lawrence against the wall, leaving his hands on the Dr.'s lapels. "What's it going to be? Your son is lying in a hospital bed recovering from near-death at the hands of an ex-girlfriend turned terrorist and you're running away because you don't want him to know how you've squandered every penny you ever earned and have become the laughing stock of your profession! Well, I'm sick of being party to your crimes against Lucas, Wolenczak. If you want to walk out that door right now, then fine, walk. It won't surprise anyone. But know this-- you walk now and so help me God I'll make sure that you can never walk back into his life again! Do you understand me?"

Lawrence nodded frantically, at least as frantically as he could with an ex-UEO captain holding him up against the wall.

Bridger took a deep breath before releasing his captive.

"Now, I'm going back to Lucas' room. You do whatever you want to do. I'm through with you." After a quick glare, Nathan started down the hallway. He only got a few feet before he heard Lawrence's quiet voice.

"I always loved him, Nathan. I still do."

Bridger paused. "Does he know that?" 

~

The next time Lucas woke, he had a flash of panic before he remembered where he was. The pain was still gone, which he definitely liked, but the painkillers responsible for the miracle left him feeling groggy. Even so, his muddy mind still registered the form of the man sitting next to his bed.

"Hey, kiddo. It's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

Lucas licked his dry lips before answering in a hoarse voice. "I'll let you know when my brain starts working again."

Bridger smiled, brushing Lucas' unruly hair out of his face. Maybe it was just an effect of the drugs in his system, but Lucas felt like a lifeline had been thrown to him with that one simple act. He hadn't had physical human contact in a long time...

"I had the strangest dreams, Captain..." He closed his eyes, sighing. "I dreamt that my father was here."

Bridger sucked in a breath. He had been hoping that Lucas had been too drugged to remember that particular event. He paused, waging the pros and cons about telling him the truth-- that his father had been there, had in fact been calling Hudson every month to check up on him, but as soon as he had come face to face with his son he ran away. Again.

"You would have thought I would have grown out of those fantasies long ago."

The hurt in his eyes convinced Bridger to spill it all.

"Lucas, your dream was--"

"Was no dream, son." 

Shocked, Lucas looked up from contemplating the IV in his hand to stare open mouthed at the figure of his father standing in the doorway. 

"Nathan, if you don't mind..." Lawrence motioned with his head, his intent clear, but Bridger paused, silently asking Lucas for permission.

"Go ahead, Captain."

Nathan patted his arm as he got up, sending Lawrence a look that clearly said-- you hurt him, you die-- before walking out, leaving Lawrence Wolenczak alone with his son for the first time in twelve years.

Lawrence moved from the entryway to sit beside his son's hospital bed, trying to fill the awkward silence with anything that he could. He fidgited with his hands while Lucas stared, over his initial shock at seeing his father again and now wanting to intimidate the one person who intimidated him for most of his young life.

"So, the doctor says you're going to be all right." Lawrence looked up into his son's face, trying to gauge his reaction to his presence. Lucas' face was completely void of any emotion. He just stared unblinkingly into his father's eyes. Lawrence decided to leave all pretense of small talk and jump in with both feet.

"Lucas, I'm sorry. I know that you've been having a hard time lately, and my... absence hasn't made it any easier. It's just that... when your mother died, I felt as if everything from that part of my life was gone. I just... I wanted to put all of that pain behind me. I'm sorry."

"Do you really expect to say that you're sorry and everything will be forgiven? I've been back and onboard the seaQuest now for six months! It wasn't like I was hard to find."

Lawrence's quick temper flared at his son's apparent disregard for his frankness. "It's not like you tried to get in touch with me, either."

"You're my father! For God's sake, if there was one time in my life that I needed you the most, it's now! Do you understand what happened to me? I went to sleep one night in 2022 and woke up ten years later! I don't remember half of what happened to us, and what I do remember comes back in flashes. It... it wasn't pretty, Dad. I lost friends. And then to suddenly be thrown into an entirely new world in which all the rules have changed... it would have been nice to have one thing I remembered be the same. But wait-- you were never around when I was growing up; I guess things with you were the same."

"Lucas, will you listen for once in your life?" Lawrence sighed and rubbed his hands over his eyes. This was definitely not going the way he had imagined it. "Look, I... in the ten years you were gone, a lot of things happened, and... well, the truth is I lost all of my money. I mean all of it. After Cynthia died, I went a little... well, nuts, and immersed myself in any project I could find. I'm a joke, Lucas; a broke, old, joke. I just didn't want you to see me this way." 

"Dad... I'm sorry, but I don't care about your money. I don't even care about the damned Wolenczak name. I guess I wanted a tearful reunion full of hugs and everything you'd expect in a sappy holo-vid. I watched the other crew reunite and... I wanted a fantasy. I shouldn't have expected so much. I--"

The rest of Lucas' sentence was muffled as he was crushed against his father's chest, arms encircling his still weak frame. He was stunned for a moment; his father had never been an affectionate man. In fact, Lucas could only think of a few times in his life in which he had been hugged this way. Slowly, as if moving too fast would break whatever spell Lawrence was under, he wrapped his arms around his father and hugged him back.

They stayed like that for a long time. When they finally broke apart, both of their faces were wet with tears. Lawrence cupped his son's face in his palms as he spoke.

"Lucas, don't you ever think that I didn't miss you, or that I forgot about you while you were gone. I poured money into the search effort, and once they stopped searching officially, I privately funded a group to continue. I missed you every day that you were gone, and I prayed to God that someday I would be able to fix the mistakes I have made with you. That start's now." With his thumb, he wiped the tears from under Lucas' eyes. "I love you, son. I have always loved you."

Lucas closed his eyes and sighed, finally feeling at peace. "I love you to, Dad."


	16. Epilogue

What Doesn't Kill...  
epilogue

"December 19th, 2032

Dear Juliana, 

Dr. Perry thought that it might be a good idea that I write you this letter. I'm not so sure. I mean, what do I have to say to you? You're rotting in jail, something I never pictured you doing well... I mean, I never pictured you there at all. How could you change so much? Is ten years so long that people can become something that they're not? Or did I never really know you at all? 

When I hear your name, all I can picture is the way you looked when I first saw you at Node 3, a million lifetimes ago; your hair was all messy, pulled back in a rushed pony tail that looked like it would fall out any minute. And Nick; God... I wish I could have seen him one last time. He was a good man, Jules. But I guess you knew that...

You were my first love. Not that I had much opportunity for love in my adolescence; my mind always separated me from everyone my age. With you it was like none of that mattered. You weren't intimidated by it. You weren't intimidated by much at all.

I think I'd like to remember you that way, if you don't mind. I know that Dr. Perry would say that I'm running from what happened, but that's not it. The Juliana I knew was a loving, gentle soul who had an incredible mind and great things in her future. I really believe that you were meant for better things, Jules. Much better things...

Thinking about you makes me think of how much my life has changed since the good old days. Actually, not just my life, but the whole world. We're on the brink of war, and my friends are dying. You're in jail, Lonnie's dead, my father is actually talking to me... 

It's like I'm living in a parallel dimension, that maybe I can somehow find my way back to my world, pick up where I left off. I could have one more conversation with Brody, tell him how much I looked up to him. He was the perfect soldier, Jules. Always in control. He was military through and through. And he died. If someone like Brody can die so easily, what does that say for my chances of surviving? I'm not some kid anymore, Jules, I'm an actual officer. People listen and do what I tell them to. I'm not just responsible for myself, and Captain Bridger isn't around to make sure I'm safe. What if it turns out that I can't do everything? What if I'm... not good enough?

Wow, by the looks of things, I guess I had a lot to say to you, huh?

Tony tells me that I need a girl to get my mind off of things. I wish I could be like him. He's so... free. He's adjusting so well. I mean, he had this huge crush on Lonnie, and now she's... And he doesn't even really talk about it. I did catch him one night, though, by the moonpool. He had her dogtags, and he was just staring into space. I left him alone. He's always been someone who likes to keep his emotions to himself. But I know he misses her. We all do. 

Tony's wrong, though. I don't need a girl. I need... well for one thing, I need a good night's sleep. Dr. Perry tells me that the nightmares will go away, and every time they come I pray that she's right. Most of the time I wake up out of breath, all of the pain returning, with your face in my mind-- the expression you had on your face as you held your gun on me...

I know I told you that I wasn't going to remember you like that, but I think my subconscious has other plans. Can you blame it for focusing on that image?

They are getting farther and farther in between, though, for which I am grateful. I know Hudson is too; I haven't been at my peak job performance level lately. He's been pretty understanding, all things considered; I mean, I did manage to get his boat boarded by terrorists. Could you blame the man for being a little mad? I certainly expected him to. But you know, he really wasn't. That man confuses me. One minute he's throwing Tim across the bridge and making me do a sensor overhaul by myself, and the next he's giving me all this shore leave and personal time. Maybe there's more to him then I originally thought...

In any case, I'm going back to full duty soon. I think I'm ready to handle it. I admit, the whole ensign thing really got to my head there for a while. I guess I should be glad that I still have friends. I know now though that being an ensign isn't all it's cracked up to be, but I just might make it through. I've realized that it doesn't matter what planet or dimension I'm in or in or out of; as long as I have my friends, I'll make it through.

Not an earth shattering revelation, but it'll do. People always say that you learn from your mistakes and experiences, good or bad. I guess from all of this I've learned that I need to let go of the past, and embrace this new world I'm living in. It may be very different from the one I remember, but it's still the same place that I left.

Hey, what is it that people say about hard times? What doesn't kill makes you stronger? 

Well, I'm trying to get stronger, Jules. Maybe one day soon I can look back at all of this and say that it made me a better soldier, or a stronger man. Maybe even that I would go through it all again because of what it taught me. 

But I doubt it.

I miss you.

Love, Lucas." 

* * *

Katequestie, October 11th, 2002


End file.
